Share

Stop interfering, tweets Madonsela

Johannesburg - Public Protector Thuli Madonsela on Tuesday took to twitter and told politicians to stop interfering with her work.

"Administrative scrutiny is a reality if our constitutional democracy. It's not a political exercise & Politicians should stop interfering [sic]," she tweeted.

ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe and his deputy Jesse Duarte criticised Madonsela and her office at a press briefing on Tuesday.

"We-are in trouble when politicians meddle in the investigation processes and leak documents then cry foul [sic]," Madonsela tweeted.

Madonsela reportedly wrote to President Jacob Zuma last week about the spending of R246m on security upgrades at his Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal homestead.

In her letter, she cautioned him he was second-guessing her recommendations that he should repay part of the money spent on features unrelated to security, such as a swimming pool, cattle kraal, amphitheatre, and visitors' centre.

In his reply to her report on Nkandla, Zuma indicated Police Minister Nathi Nhleko needed to determine if he should pay back any of the R246m.

Madonsela wrote in her letter: "I am concerned that the decision you have made regarding the police minister gives him power he does not have under law, which is to review my decision taken in pursuit of the powers of administrative scrutiny I am given... by the Constitution."

Madonsela said on Monday that she had reason to believe a senior ANC official leaked her letter to the media.

Duarte and Mantashe questioned the timing of leak and the heckling of Zuma by EFF MPs in the National Assembly on Thursday.

The EFF had asked when Zuma would repay the Nkandla money, but did not get a reply. Speaker Baleka Mbete had to suspend proceedings and riot police were called in.

"A leak at the same time when the EFF undermines the people of SA is too much of a coincidence," Duarte said.

Said Mantashe: "Even more curious is that some MPs claim to have seen the public protector in the parliamentary precinct on the same day. Without accusing anybody, the tight co-ordination of this offensive is interesting."

The pair accused Madonsela of meddling in politics.

She stood her ground and questioned how accountability was weakening democracy.

"Can someone please say how exactly is the deepening of accountability a weakening parliamentary democracy... Let's face th truth. What's embarrassing the country isattempts to subvert the rule of law & not administrative scrutiny [sic]," she said.

Madonsela said if everyone respected the Constitution and the law, there would be no crisis in the country.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
41% - 581 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
59% - 822 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.89
+0.3%
Rand - Pound
23.87
+0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.38
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.32
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE