ANC OUTRAGED BY THE PUBLIC PROTECTOR 'S LETER

The African National Congress views the letter of the Public Protector in response to the President's Report to Parliament as concerning. It is the view of the ANC that the Office of the Public Protector has done its work which it referred to Parliament for further processing. Towards this end, parliament has established a Parliamentary Ad-hoc Committee which will refer to all reports submitted to be able to discharge its mandate.

The letter of the Public Protector can be interpreted as undermining the Parliamentary process, it's authority to process the manner and its attendant competencies. It does appear that while the Public Protector has submitted her report to Parliament she has no confidence in the institution and its independence as the arm of state. With reluctance, we suspect that the Public Protector has dealt with the investigation as a personal matter outside of the Constitutional mandate of the office.

We call on the Public Protector to desist from playing into the gallery and respect other Constitutional entities to fulfill their role without interference and undue pressure. We are confident that Parliament and its committees will act in the interest of public good and we do not doubt their bonafides. The extraordinary conduct of the Public Protector raises questions about her neutrality on this matter which might undermine the credibility of her conduct or the intentions of her report.

The ANC reaffirms its belief on the Chapter 9 institutions and their role to deepen democracy and accountability of government. We urge the Public Protector not to undermine the role of this office by her conduct which is contradictory to her recommendations that parliament must process her report and that of the President.

Statement issued by Zizi Kodwa, ANC national spokesperson, August 24 2014

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