OPPOSITION parties have bluntly rejected the recommendation that Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka’s should be the new public protector and called for a fresh process.
The DA and the EFF said the acting public protector was not suitable for the position.
"We hold the view that none of the candidates interviewed are suitable for appointment, given the enormous responsibility this position holds. The candidates all showed an alarming lack of basic knowledge of the legal framework in which they would be required to operate.
"We further hold the view that an appointment should not be made simply due to a lack of any better alternatives," said Glynnis Breytenbach, the DA's shadow minister of justice and constitutional development.
She said the public protector's office was a critical institution tasked with strengthening constitutional democracy in South Africa.
Breytenbach claimed that Gcaleka was unable to shake off the baggage from her past and had not demonstrated the “dynamism” required during her acting stint.
“The Public Protector is thus one of the most invaluable constitutional gifts to our nation in the fight against corruption, unlawful enrichment, prejudice and impropriety in state affairs and for the betterment of good governance. She is the embodiment of a biblical David, who fights the most powerful and very well-resourced Goliath," she said.
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She said the outgoing suspended public protector, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane, had done immense damage to the Chapter 9 institution.
The EFF said the committee’s recommendation was “irrational“ and “nonsensical”.
Party spokeswoman Leigh-Ann Mathys said the PP's office required a leader who could be both impartial and decisive.
“This individual exhibited a serious lapse in ethical judgment in the performance of her official duties, particularly in the case involving Phala Phala. Gcaleka’s role in an investigation that directly implicates (President) Cyril Ramaphosa is questionable, given the potential for it to impact her future in the Office of the Public Protector,” said Mathys.
Gcaleka cleared President Cyril Ramaphosa of any wrongdoing in the Phala Phala farm scandal on 30 June.
