Court ruling in Mkhwebane’s favour of no effect until ConCourt confirmation – expert

As the Section 194 inquiry into the fitness of Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane resumes in parliament today, experts say the Western Cape High Court in Cape Town ruling in her favour was far from sanctioning her to return to office.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) launched an appeal against last week’s full bench court decision declaring her suspension by President Cyril Ramaphosa invalid with immediate effect.

Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya yesterday declined to comment on the Mkhwebane matter, except to say: “Subsequent appeals have since been filed through the courts after the Western Cape High Court judgment. Therefore, we will not comment any further.”

Scathing on the decision to suspend Mkhwebane, the court found Ramaphosa’s decision to be “tainted by bias”.

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Asked to comment on the impact of the ruling on paving the way to a possible return for Mkhwebane to office, Lawson Naidoo, executive secretary of the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution, told The Citizen: “The PP [public protector] has not been cleared by the Western Cape High Court decision. The court only found her suspension by the office of the president was tainted by bias and therefore unconstitutional.

“Any finding of unconstitutionality by the president must be confirmed by an order of the Constitutional Court. It is of no effect until then,” Naidoo said.

“The DA has also filed an appeal against the court decision, which automatically suspends its effect. So, the PP remains suspended, with her suspension having no bearing on the continuation of the impeachment process in parliament.”