Cape Town - Public Protector South Africa (PPSA) senior investigator Bianca Mvuyana on Monday said the processes of investigations at the institution were followed when they probed the so-called “rogue unit”.
Mvuyana was testifying before the Section 194 Committee on the fitness of Public Protector Mkhwebane to hold office on Monday.
In her report, Mkhwebane made adverse findings against Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan, former SARS commissioners Irvin Pillay and Oupa Magashula.
The report has since been set aside and reviewed by the court.
Led in her testimony by Mkhwebane’s legal counsel advocate Dali Mpofu, Mvuyana said at the start of their investigations there were consultation meetings, assessment of the complaint and trying to understand what the complainant wanted probed.
“We even met the complainant and had a detailed complaint. We met, he explained and qualified the allegations made,” she said.
Mvuyana also said they wrote to SARS to obtain more information as well as the president since the complaint fell under the Executive Members Ethics Code Act.
Correspondence was also sent to Gordhan and the allegations were listed.
“We received responses from SARS and Mr Gordhan. The documents that were received were analysed thoroughly.
“We sat down and looked at the document and not just skimmed through,” Mvuyana said during her testimony.
She told the Section 194 impeachment inquiry that all that was relevant in their investigation was considered.
Mvuyana also stated that subpoenas were issued to the main players for them to respond.
“Everyone responded. We went through the responses and incorporated them into the evidence,” she said.
When Mpofu started leading Mvuyana’s testimony, he said the inquiry was not concerned with determining whether there was a rogue unit or not.
He noted that the committee was given judgments and the evidence leaders deemed them binding, a move he said was an incorrect premise.
“We hold a different view. We hold a view that this is an inquiry,” Mpofu said.
“The mere fact that we have inquiry into judgments, the committee must inquire about the findings made otherwise we waste the taxpayers’ time,” he said.
Mpofu asked whether when conducting the investigation, PPSA was bound by other reports on the subject matter and Mvuyana said in her response that they conducted their own.
“We hope the committee will learn from that approach,” Mpofu said.
Cape Times