Johannesburg -
The inquiry into IEC chairwoman Pansy Tlakula's fitness to hold office is expected to continue in the Electoral Court sitting in the Johannesburg High Court on Thursday.
Tlakula is fighting against an application by some opposition parties to have her resign her position at the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC).
Their bid followed a forensic investigation by the Treasury which found that the procurement of the IEC's Riverside Office Park building in Centurion had not been fair, transparent or cost-effective.
The Treasury investigation followed a recommendation by Public Protector Thuli Madonsela, in her own report into the matter.
Madonsela found Tlakula had a relationship - possibly of a romantic nature - with the chairman of Parliament's finance portfolio committee, Thaba Mufamadi. He was a shareholder in Abland, which owns the Riverside Office Park building in Centurion, Pretoria, the IEC's current premises.
On Wednesday, the court heard Tlakula had made an “honest mistake” during the procurement process.
“The fact that people make mistakes does not have a bearing on their integrity, their impartiality,” Daniel Berger, SC, for Tlakula, told the court. - Sapa