Cape Town – President Cyril Ramaphosa did not take pleasure in removing former Public Protector, advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane, from office, according to Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya.
Magwenya, who briefed the media on Thursday about the president’s diary in the coming weeks, said that the decision was guided by the Constitution and followed established processes.
After the National Assembly voted overwhelmingly for Mkhwebane’s removal, Ramaphosa informed her of his decision.
“I therefore hereby inform you that you are hereby removed from the office of the public protector in terms of section 194(3)(b) of the Constitution on the grounds of misconduct and incompetence. I attach herein a copy of the President Act recording my decision (Annexure “B”),” the president said.
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Magwenya said that the Constitution outlines clear steps for such actions, and the President adhered to these guidelines.
The removal was not based on emotions but on constitutional stipulations, he said.
“Is it something that one would take delight in? Of course not. The Office of the Public Protector is a very important institution of our democracy, [and] the expectation is that that institution is properly led, and the expectation is that that institution is able to dispense its mandate properly without any form of disturbance or without any form of interference.
“Parliament or the Section 194 committee concluded that advocate Mkhwebane had misconducted herself and that she was incompetent and, in that regard, as I said, the president is guided by the Constitution in terms of his actions. It is not an issue of emotions; it is an issue of what is stipulated in the Constitution and ensuring that those prescripts of our Constitution are followed in the manner that they are laid out.”
Magwenya did not comment on Mkhwebane’s benefits or any potential golden handshake, deferring those matters to the National Assembly.
“In so far as the president is concerned, the president has fulfilled his constitutional obligation on this matter [and] other matters going forward will then be dealt with by the National Assembly,” he said.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu