Johannesburg – The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) on Tuesday welcomed Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane's remedial action on the CIEX report that Absa pay back R1.125 billion in apartheid-era bailouts, adding that she, however, did not have the power to order Parliament to amend the Constitution.
EFF spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi said not even the judges had the power to make an instruction that the Constitution be amended.
"The EFF questions the PP's constitutional wisdom and understanding because of her remedial action in which she instructs Parliament to amend the Constitution in relations to the role of the Reserve Bank. No matter how noble her proposed amendment maybe, she has no power to instruct a constitutional amendment," said Ndlozi.
"The danger with her Constitutional amendment recommendation is that it will be refuted by the court. This will result in a general distrust in her capacity to take decisions that can stand the test of judicial review."
Mkhwebane on Monday released a report on the alleged failure to recover “misappropriated funds” in the erstwhile Bankorp lifeboat investigation.
She criticised Sarb for failing to recover more than R1 billion from Bankorp Limited/ABSA Bank, advanced as an “illegal gift” to the Bankorp group, which was bought by Absa in the early 1990s.
She referred the matter to the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to recover misappropriated public funds unlawfully given to Absa Bank “in the amount of R1.125 billion”.
She further ordered remedial action directing Parliament to effect a constitutional amendment to the Reserve Bank’s powers.
The Sarb said on Tuesday it would challenge Mkhwebane’s “unlawful” remedial action and that she had no powers to direct Parliament to effect a Constitutional amendment.
Ndlozi said "a durable solution" for South Africa was a state-owned bank that will re-direct capital investment to the poor, underdeveloped communities and a state led industrialisation.