Suspended public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane. Picture: Jacques Nelles
With less than six months until advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s tenure expires, Parliament is gearing up to appoint the new Public Protector.
From next week, the ad hoc committee tasked with finding Mkhwebane’s replacement is set to publish an advertisement calling for nominations from the public, and applications from eligible candidates.
The committee, which consists of 11 voting members and 14 non-voting members, met this week and is expected to work through the National Assembly’s constituency period from 18 June to 31 August
The State Security Agency (SSA) will be roped in to handle the screening process of candidates.
Parliament’s human resources department will also be involved in verifying qualifications, while the South African Police Service (Saps) will background checks on the candidates’ criminal history.
On Wednesday, Democratic Alliance (DA) MP Werner Horn highlighted there was a concern that screening was not adequate enough when the process was carried out in 2016.
“An argument was made at the time to say mere screening is not sufficient given the fact that the requirement is that the Public Protector should ultimately qualify for top-secret security clearance,” he said.
“The committee settled for mere screening, but it was nonetheless somewhat controversial also given that the then Deputy Public Protector [Kevin Malunga], who was one of the candidates, would never qualify for top-secret security clearance to due the fact that he was no a South African citizen.”
Horn asked the committee to consider screening process instead of vetting as it was simpler, less exhaustive and less time-consuming.
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African National Congress (ANC) MP Bulelani Magwanishe suggested that the committee’s chairperson, Cyril Xaba meet with Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, who is responsible for the SSA, to discuss the possibility of putting together a team, which will be tasked to to the screen of candidates within the proposed two weeks.
“I think vetting usually takes much more time and if we go for vetting, we might not be able to meet [our deadline]. If there is no law that restricts us, I will support the screening,” Magwanishe said.
DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach shared the same sentiments.
“I think we need to ask for a dedicated team, for screening and also for a very thorough screening. The last screening process left quite a lot to be desired in 2016,” she said.
According to the committee’s programme, the advertisement for the position will go live on 12 June, with the applications cycle set to close on 7 July.
Thereafter, the CVs received will be consolidated and published on the parliamentary website for public comment for two weeks.
The committee is aiming to shortlist candidates during the last week of July, while the screening process will take place from 1 to 18 August.
READ MORE: Mkhwebane inquiry: Future public protectors will worry about being impeached – witness
Interviews will then be conducted between 21 and 25 August, after which the committee will deliberate on the interviewed candidates until the end of the month.
The candidate recommended by the committee will have to be approved by at least 60% of the National Assembly.
The selected name will be sent to President Cyril Ramaphosa for appointment.
Mkhwebane’s seven-year term in office ends in October.
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