Upcoming vacancy: public protector

The ad hoc committee established to nominate a candidate for the position of public protector would like to inform South Africans that the advertisement calling for nominations or applications for the post is now available. South Africans are reminded to take note of the closing time and date, which is 16h00 on 24 June 2016, Read more >

PP candidates’ names to be published

The ad hoc committee established to nominate a person for the appointment of public protector has agreed to publish names of people that would have been nominated or applied to serve as the new public protector, said Parliament yesterday in a statement. Committee chairperson Dr Makhosi Khoza said publishing the names of nominees or applicants Read more >

Public protector selection process about to start

The moment that South Africans have been anticipating is almost here – next week the selection and appointment of a new public protector will officially begin with the establishment of an ad hoc committee to oversee the process. The National Assembly is responsible for the process, which must be open to public participation in terms Read more >

SPEAK UP, South Africa: the impact of the Nkandla ruling

By David Lewis First published on Transparency International In March this year South Africa’s highest court upheld a landmark investigation by the courageous public protector Thuli Madonsela that showed how taxpayers’ money had been used to upgrade President Jacob Zuma’s personal residence. This underscored the importance of the role of the Public Protector in holding Read more >

Little transparency in Parly shortlist process

On Friday 22 April, a multiparty subcommittee of Parliament’s joint standing committee on intelligence met to shortlist candidates applying to be the new inspector-general of intelligence (IGI) – but dismally failed the transparency test. This has important implications for our Bua Mzansi campaign, which is mobilising people to get involved in choosing the new public protector. The Read more >

Public reporting would curb illicit outflows from SA

They come, they see and – due to relaxed tax and finance laws, or legal firms that have perfected the art of tax avoidance – they conquer a lot more than they invest in Africa. These are multinational companies that find loopholes in the legislation of the continent’s poorest countries and are able to dodge Read more >

SA’s public protectors – the legacies, part three

Our new three-part Bua Mzansi series looks at the careers of South Africa’s three public protectors to date. In part three, we focus on Thuli Madonsela, who, with her team, has raised the image and reputation of the institution to unprecedented heights. Parts one and two looked at Selby Baqwa and Lawrence Mushwana respectively. Public Read more >

SA’s public protectors – the legacies, part two

The mixed legacy left by South Africa’s public protectors continues in part two of our three-part series, which deals with Lawrence Mushwana, the predecessor of incumbent Thuli Madonsela. Part three will look at Madonsela herself, while part one highlighted the role played by now-Judge Selby Baqwa in establishing the institution of the Public Protector. Lawrence Read more >

Corrupt Mpuma cops’ days are numbered

South Africans are used to encountering corruption in various aspects of their life, but it’s worse when the problem extends to visitors to the country. For instance, it’s worrying and embarrassing to find advice on how to approach corrupt South African traffic officers on international travel organisations such as TripAdvisor. Over the last few years Read more >