Parliament may not be able to conclude Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s impeachment inquiry
With only five months to go before Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s tenure comes to an end, Parliament is facing the possibility of not being able to conclude her impeachment inquiry.
The Section 194 committee is asking Parliament to allow a further extension of the inquiry to the end of June.
But speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said this did not set a good precedent, as she considered whether to allow another impeachment inquiry, this time against a commissioner of the Gender Equality Commission.
Mapisa-Nqakula on Thursday said Mkhwebane’s legal costs now standing at around R30 million have gone far beyond what Parliament ever anticipated.
Mapisa-Nqakula said Parliament found itself between a rock and a hard place.
It cannot allow Mkhwebane’s legal costs to grow any further. Neither can it allow the process to collapse.
“Particularly when you look at the term of a person whether you want to continue with this kind of hearing and spend the kind of money which we have spent on the legal costs of the Public Protector, or you want to say to the person, look, let’s negotiate your package, and you leave.”
She said the outcome would impact launching a Section 194 inquiry against a Gender Equality Commissioner for uttering a derogatory slur against another commissioner.
“If we were to stop this whole process midway before we’ve completed it, there will be an audit finding against Parliament.”
Parliament has now filed its response to Mkhwebane’s latest Constitutional Court review related to her legal bills.
-EWN
In other news – Actor Gabriel Temudzani (Chief Azwindini) speaks out after leaving Muvhango
South African actor Gabriel Temudzani, who bid farewell to Muvhango on Monday, 8 May says leaving the soapie was an emotional roller coaster.
The popular Muvhango actor Gabriel Temudzani, who played Azwinidini Mukwevho for more than two decades tells a local publication that he’s ready to apply himself in other spaces. “It’s an emotional roller coaster. Muvhango has been my home for a long time and unfortunately, we are here. Learn More
