Parliament, Tuesday, 13 June 2023 – The Chairperson of the Committee for Section 194 Enquiry into Public Protector (PP) Adv Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office, Mr Qubudile Dyantyi, today released the latest correspondence following the committee meeting held on Friday, 9 June 2023.
This includes a letter from RMT Attorneys, Adv Mkhwebane’s personal lawyers (who are not on record in the Section 194 proceedings), which requests that Mr Dyantyi recuse himself from the committee proceedings voluntarily. The correspondence also includes Mr Dyantyi’s response to this letter and another letter to the PP detailing the committee resolution on the way forward, as agreed to at the Friday meeting.
Mr Dyantyi informed the PP that he will respond to a written application for his recusal, but this has not been forthcoming. Until that time, he will not voluntarily recuse himself, as such a request asks him to abdicate from his parliamentary and constitutional obligations on the basis of no more than media reports and WhatsApp messages, the contents of which fall outside the Public Protector’s own personal knowledge.
In addition, the Chairperson – in today’s letter – sets out the steps to be followed to allow for the fair conclusion of the enquiry, given the various delays. In his letter, Mr Dyantyi emphasised that the committee is bound by the Constitution and the National Assembly Rules, which require it to complete its task diligently, in a fair manner and within a reasonable timeframe, without delay. Mr Dyantyi therefore believes that the procedure set out on the way forward is the only viable option that will allow the process to conclude in a manner that is fair to all the role players.
The committee was established on 16 March 2021 to conduct a constitutional inquiry into the PP’s fitness to hold office. The committee is expected to finalise its work on 28 July 2023. Committee documents can be found at Committee for Section 194 Enquiry - Parliament of South Africa
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMITTEE FOR SECTION 194 ENQUIRY, MR QUBUDILE DYANTYI.
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