Cape Town - Parliament’s Section 194 inquiry into the fitness of suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane continued on Tuesday with former Public Protector of South Africa (PPSA) CEO Vussy Mahlangu defending himself against allegations that he had intimidated and victimised staff.
Mahlangu joined the organisation in May 2018 and resigned in January 2020.
During his tenure there were a number of disciplinary proceedings and suspensions that took place, which according to him included that of the now reinstated Free State head, Sphelo Samuel, who concluded his evidence on Monday.
During questioning by advocate Nazreen Bawa, Mahlangu explained that he had no intention of appearing before the committee as the volume of documentary evidence pertaining to his conduct as CEO was some 10000 pages long.
Mahlangu nonetheless prepared an affidavit to address the committee and said his motivation in preparing the affidavit was to address the allegations levelled against him by staff, which included harassment and intimidation.
In the affidavit he stated: “I vehemently deny having intimidated, harassed or victimised any staff members while I was employed as the CEO at the PPSA, nor was I, as I am referred to ‘The Enforcer’ of Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane.”
He further said he did not know Mkhwebane before he was employed by PPSA.
Advocate Bawa then went on to establish that the outcome of the disciplinary proceedings he had been subject to as deputy director-general of the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform did not involve him being found guilty of corruption or misappropriation of funds.
He also clarified that Samuel’s disciplinary proceedings were a result of him being made aware that the organisation was being sued for R350 000. He said: “I had to take a decision to say if we lose the case how would I justify the payment of litigation.”
An internal issue at the PPSA regarding leakage of information had resulted in a media frenzy after Mahlangu was openly questioned by a staff member for not having security clearance – a prerequisite for the CEO title.
It was subsequently explained that this clearance was subject to the outcome of the pending labour court proceedings wherein he had challenged the findings against him.
Mahlangu, however, said he didn’t consider the confrontation as a personal attack, after acknowledging that on two occasions this employee had spoken openly about Mahlangu not having security clearance for his role as CEO.
In addressing the information leak, advocate Bawa questioned Mahlangu on the possible link between the investigation on the leak of information and the subsequent disciplinary process of Tebogo Kekana.
“As an accounting officer I had to put some measures or check what’s really causing, where is the source of these leakages. We were to bring external people and you will know in an investigation chair that there might be a need that they take your computers, gadgets and all the stuff. I’m specifying this because it was all over in the news.
“The gist of the matter here is that later it turns out that the sharing of unauthorised information, I won’t say specifically about the president and them, but other information come up was between Kekane and (the employee) so that led to the two being charged. So it’s got nothing to do with what they said.”
He further stated he was just doing his job. “Here I was just doing my pure administrative work unless they want to come and prove it differently, but they’ve already spoken. I’ve listened, there is no such.
“The investigation on Kekana and (another) was purely from the report where we brought an outside person to investigate the leakage of the information.”
Bawa put it to him regarding the suspension of the employee: “On the basis that the suspension had been served on him after he had resigned he regarded the proceedings as a form of persecution to cause him some distress.”
To which he proffered a response in his affidavit, “he came to be charged when there was a reason for him to be charged – for being complicit in the leakage of confidential documentation,” Mahlangu said.