Mkhwebane defends Ace doing Estina dairy probe
No finding made against ex-premier
The decision by public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane not to make any adverse findings on former Free State premier Ace Magashule became the main bone of contention in the application to have her report on the Vrede dairy farm project set aside. Yesterday, judge Ronel Tolmay constantly questioned why, in light of what had been reported in the media, Mkhwebane found it appropriate to allow Magashule to be the one taking further investigations and disciplinary processes into the irregularities. Mkhwebane’s lawyer Anthea Platt argued in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria that Magashule was served with a notice as he was implicated in the project. However, Mkhwebane did not have any adverse finding against him hence she saw it appropriate for him to instruct investigations.
But Tolmay was not satisfied with this reasoning. “How can one under these circumstances appoint the premier to be the one who commissions the investigations? … At that point, for the purposes of transparency, public confidence and accountability, the person implicated should not have been involved.”
Platt argued that the Vrede dairy farm report could not be compared to the Nkandla report by the Mkhwebane’s predecessor, Thuli Madonsela. “There were no adverse findings against the premier in the report. In the case of the president [Jacob Zuma] there were adverse findings.” Platt argued that there was no evidence before the court to suggest that Mkhwebane had failed in her constitutional obligations in the report. The DA and Council for the Advancement of the SA Constitution (Casac) have applied in court to get Mkhwebane’s report, released in February, set aside. More than R220m was allegedly poured into the project, with only R2m spent on the actual farm.
The project was implemented in partnership with Guptalinked company Estina, which allegedly transferred money from the project to the family. Earlier, advocate Vuyani Ngalwana SC, who also represents Mkhwebane told the court that the whole application by the DA was a political ploy. He said the DA had never supported Mkhwebane’s appointment and this was part of that political agenda.
The DA wants the report set aside as it also has no indication on the role played by Magashule and then Free State MEC of agriculture Mosebenzi Zwane.