THE DA says it cannot support the nomination of Busisiwe Mkhwebane as the country's next public protector because of her recent employment with the State Security Agency (SSA).
A day before the National Assembly is expected to approve Mkhwebane’s appointment, DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach reiterated the party's objections on the grounds that she offered no feasible explanation for leaving a post as a director at Home Affairs for a lower-paid position as an analyst at the intelligence service.
“Asked in the interview why she had changed jobs for what was ostensibly a demotion, her reply was that she ‘was passionate about the constitution’,” Breytenbach said.
“The DA has been advised that the time she spent as an ‘immigration officer’ in China was also suspicious, having been informed that this was simply coded language for being on the payroll of the SSA.”
Breytenbach said Mkhwebane was not the best candidate of those shortlisted and that the current political climate argued against appointing anybody who was close to the intelligence structures.
“This situation is even more problematic in the current climate where the justified view is held that President Jacob Zuma is abusing state departments, the SSA in particular, to hang on to power at all costs.
"The public protector cannot be seen as even remotely connected to the SSA.” – ANA