New public protector ‘dancing to Zuma’s tune’

Johannesburg – It seems that newly appointed Public Protector (PP) Busisiwe Mkhwebane is dancing to President Jacob Zuma’s tune and acting on his behalf to undo the valuable work done by her predecessor Thuli Madonsela, the Democratic Alliance said on Sunday.

“Mkhwebane has laid criminal charges against Madonsela in relation to the release of a recording that exposed Zuma’s repeated lies about not being given an opportunity to respond to allegations of state capture against him,” DA spokeswoman Glynnis Breytenbach said.

While Zuma had every right to lodge a grievance with the PP, it was telling that Mkhwebane jumped straight to criminal charges without conducting any further investigation. Zuma was also perfectly capable of laying a criminal charge against Madonsela if he felt aggrieved and should not rely on Mkhwebane to do so, Breytenbach said.

“That she did so speaks to a general attitude and pre-disposition to protect and act in the interest of Zuma and not in the interests of the people of South Africa.

This latest action only adds to an ever increasing list of worrying acts, including changing all the locks at the PP offices and redeploying staff who worked closely with Madonsela to undermine and expunge the work of the former PP.”

The DA did not support the appointment of Mkhwebane for numerous reasons, one being that she had always been employed in and around government and indicated that she wanted to have a more “friendly relationship with government”. We are now seeing he consequences of her appointment.

The capture of vital state institutions had become an ever present reality in South Africa. Only the office of the PP and the judiciary had remained relatively unblemished by capture. It now seemed that the new PP was well on her way to acting in favour of the politically compromised and elite, Breytenbach said.