Passion for justice lands Mhaga key NPA job
● East Cape-born advocate appointed special director of public prosecutions
A passion for justice and his fellow citizens helped advocate Mthunzi Mhaga land one of the most important positions in the country’s justice system.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced this week that Mhaga would take on the role as special director of public prosecutions and special adviser to national director of public prosecutions Shamila Batohi.
“I guess I am attached to the [National Prosecuting Authority] by the umbilical cord,” the much-loved former NPA spokesperson joked yesteday, adding that he was right back where he had started.
He said his new job was a huge step, but one he was more than ready for.
Born and bred in Willowvale in the former Transkei, 46year-old Mhaga remains humble despite his achievements.
He spent 17 years in government, lending his legal expertise to the media and the NPA, before his elderly mother’s death in 2017 prompted him to break away and try his hand at private practice. Having completed his pupillage at the Pretoria Bar, Mhaga wanted to learn more about civil law because he felt that to be the sort of lawyer he could truly be proud of, he needed to know everything there was to know about criminal and civil law.
Mhaga started out as a volunteer prosecutor in Butterworth in 1998 because he could not get a paid position despite his BJuris and LLB degrees.
After about two months, he was placed at Lady Frere as a relief prosecutor, after which he moved to the Mthatha District Court in September 1999.
Within six months, Mhaga was promoted to the regional court division.
Two years later, he added “advocate” to his name.
But it was a Truth and Reconciliation Commission case — one he successfully prosecuted — that truly launched his career.
Of course it did not hurt when advocate Vusi Pikoli — the former head of the NPA — took an interest in him and Mhaga accompanied Pikoli all the way to Pretoria.
In 2009, he was offered the role of NPA spokesperson because of his legal expertise in communicating complex cases such as that involving former president Jacob Zuma.
Thereafter, Mhaga moved on to become spokesperson for the office of the minister of justice and constitutional development.
But as time passed, the self confessed “mama’s boy” said he became too comfortable.
It was on the eve of his mother’s burial in March 2018 that he decided to get out of his comfort zone and try something new.
“I was getting rusty legally and needed to broaden my knowledge of the law.
“I needed to extend it to civil law expertise,” he said.
“For one to be a polished lawyer, you must have knowledge of both criminal and civil law,” he said.
“I now feel that I can make a meaningful contribution.”
Reacting to the announcement of his new position, Mhaga said he was honoured to have been chosen.
His main goal now was to “bring back the glory days of the NPA”.
He said the position would entail providing strategic support and legal advice to the national director on the core business of the NPA.
“This is obviously prosecution and operational issues.”
He said he wanted to help rebuild an organisation that had taken a knock over the past decade.
“I want to capacitate the investigating directorate, which will deal with high-level corruption, because corruption threatens the economic stability of our country. We can only do that through [high-impact] prosecutions.”
When asked what his late mother would have said about his new appointment, Mhaga chuckled.
“She would probably cry. She was a crier,” he said.
‘I guess I am attached to the [National Prosecuting Authority] by the umbilical cord’