Thuli calls for urgent inquiry

Former public protector Thuli Madonsela, pictured, reiterated the urgency of a commission of inquiry into the allegations and findings of her State of Capture report released last year.

Speaking at the Press Club in Cape Town, Madonsela noted that because the state capture allegation had damaged trust between public and government, a commission of inquiry was the only way to clear the air.

“The vision at that stage was that the public protector would play a role in enforcing the remedial action, which would be to work with the public to compel the president to establish a commission of inquiry to make sure there was an open process to confirm whether indeed there is undue influence by the Zuma and Gupta families in the appointment of certain ministers and board members in state institutions,” she said.

“It’s a highly charged matter and the best way to resolve it is to have an open and transparent process where each party can have their say.”

Madonsela was also questioned on whether her successor, Busi Mkhwebane, had altered the contentious provisional report linking banking giant Absa to an apartheid-era bailout worth billions of rands.

“I choose not to comment on whether that report is the same as the one I left or whether both the conclusions about who did anything wrong and the remedial action are mine or not,” she said.