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Mkhwebane unlikely to complete probe into Ramaphosa’s leaked audio on time
'The investigation is ongoing. That is all I can say for now,' the Public Protector says.
Public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane is seen during her office’s annual outreach programme at Rabasotho Community Centre on 21 August 2019 in Midrand. Picture: Gallo Images/City Press/Tebogo Letsie
The investigation into President Cyril Ramaphosa’s remarks heard in a leaked audio is unlikely to be completed in time, says Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane.
Mkhwebane is investigating Ramaphosa for allegedly breaching the Executive Code of Ethics over the alleged abuse of public funds for ANC campaigns.
The investigation was launched after ANC MP Mervyn Dirks wrote to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) in December 2021 requesting the committee to summon Ramaphosa to account for comments he made in the leaked audio recording.
Despite the ANC suspending and initiating disciplinary proceedings against him, Dirks also laid a complaint with the Office of the Public Protector to investigate the matter.
Mkhwebane’s spokesperson Oupa Segalwe confirmed last month that an investigation – which would last 30 days – had been launched after receiving the complaint from Dirks, who has failed to overturn his suspension.
Ramaphosa probe ‘ongoing’
Releasing various reports on Monday, Mkhwebane said the investigation was currently ongoing, and “that’s all I can say for now”.
She said, however, that it was unlikely her office would finalise the investigation within the prescribed time.
“It doesn’t seem [like] we will be in a position to finalise the investigation within 30 working days as required by the [Executive Members Ethics] Act [82 of 1998],” the Public Protector said during a media briefing.
Mkhwebane indicated that her office had approached Parliament regarding the matter.
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“We will inform the Speaker of the National Assembly because the Executive Members Ethics Code is not clear where should we report when we can’t finalise [an investigation] within 30 working days.
“[The investigation] will only focus on the conduct of [the president], and we will not be investigating any conduct of Members of Parliament because we don’t have jurisdiction,” she said.
The Public Protector also could not disclose how long it would take to complete the investigation.
“We [are] still collecting evidence. We are still requesting affidavits [because] we are investigating independently [and also looking at] whether the investigation will proceed and how will it proceed. So I wouldn’t say by when [the investigation will be finalised],” Mkhwebane added.
Scopa
Mkhwebane’s comments come after Scopa resolved not to invite Ramaphosa to appear before the committee.
Scopa had given Ramaphosa 10 days to respond to the allegations after the committee opted against summoning the president to appear before it.
Ramaphosa’s responses, as well as a legal opinion written by Parliament’s legal services department, was tabled before the committee during a Scopa meeting held on 16 February.
During the meeting, six MPs voted not to invite Ramaphosa against the four MPs who wanted the president to appear before the committee.
READ MORE: Ramaphosa won’t appear before Scopa over ANC leaked audio after MPs vote
Following the vote, Scopa chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa said that the committee would go through the legal opinion, and compile “an operational framework” in order to pave a way forward.
According to the legal opinion, Scopa has the mandate to probe Ramaphosa’s remarks “if, indeed, public funds of any government department or public entity had been utilised for unauthorised purposes”.
The committee, however, cannot “deal with any alleged ethical breaches of the president” because only the Public Protector can determine whether Ramaphosa broke the law.
It is not within Scopa’s mandate to consider Ramaphosa’s conduct or whether he had failed to share information with the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, as alleged.
‘Fall on the sword’
In the leaked audio recording, Ramaphosa is heard saying he was “willing to fall on the sword” to protect the ANC.
“Each one of us knows that quite a bit of money that is used in campaigns, in bussing people around, and doing all manner of things, is from state and public resources. We cannot kid ourselves when it comes to that.
“As the people from State Security were testifying, one of the officials said, ‘surely, they will be revealing about how money from SSA was used for some campaign’. I said, heaven forbid
“I would rather they say, ‘yes, you got money from this businessman for CR17 than for the public to finally hear that their money was used to advance certain campaigns’,” he said during a meeting of the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC).
READ MORE: Magashule: You can’t suspend Mervyn Dirks for ‘doing the right thing’
In one of his answers, Ramaphosa explained that he had relied on public information for his comments in the audio.
This relates to SSA acting director-general Loyiso Jafta’s comment to the State Capture Commission.
Jafta told the commission last year that the government institution’s money was used to fund ANC campaigns ahead the party’s 2017 Nasrec elective conference.
Jafta claimed that a sum of R125 million could not be accounted for in the financial year 2017-2018.
