Paul Hoffman

VITAL: Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s independence is essential to the success of SA’s democratic project

It is unnecessarily expensive to keep expertise of this kind on the full-time staff on the off chance that work for it materialises, hence the well-established and sensible use of consultants, some of whom, such as insurance loss adjusters, have volunteered to help in investigations on a pro bono basis.

This practice gives rise to the effective, efficient and economical use of resources in accordance with the dictates of the constitution.

The same applies to overseas travel, which may be a necessary part of an investigation.

As for Mkhwebane’s comments on the morale of staff at head office: has it occurred to her that switching from eNCA to ANN7 and introducing unnecessary and ill-considered reforms in her first week in office may have something seriously deleterious to do with the esprit de corps of the personnel who have hitherto so proudly and independently served the public of South Africa without fear of the powerful, favour to the friendly or prejudice to the public weal?

Surely Mkhwebane is aware that the owners of ANN7 are under investigation by her staff for their involvement with and in the dangerously wrong-headed business of state capture?

Pretending (as Mkhwebane does) that state capture is not a priority, a problem or even an accurate description for the well-supported allegations that have been made in public by a deputy minister, a former senior ANC member of parliament and a senior civil servant, suggests that she does not have a cooking clue as to the true nature of her role in our constitutional democracy under the rule of law.

Let’s all hope and pray that Mkhwebane will grow into her new job, reconsider the reforms criticised above, work off that backlog of cases quickly and serve to eliminate maladministration from the affairs of state and the public administration, as the constitution requires of her in clear and unambiguous language.

The success of our constitutional project is in part dependent on the success of the office of the public protector in the lawful discharge of its mandate.

It is not a position for deployed cadres of the national democratic revolution who feel accountable to their party and not the constitution.

Hoffman SC is a director of Accountability Now and the author of the recently published book “Confronting the Corrupt”

Let’s all hope and pray that Mkhwebane will grow into her new job

Comment on this: write to tellus@sundaytimes.co.za or SMS us at 33971 www.sundaytimes.co.za