Letter from Madonsela to Parliament on State Capture report must be made public 

17 October 2016

The DA has written to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, to demand that she table the full letter sent from the former Public Protector, Adv Thuli Madonsela, to Parliament on the safe-keeping on the State Capture report.

According to the flip-flop statement released by Parliamentary Communication Services, the report will be returned to the new Public Protector, Advocate Busisiviwe Mkhwabane, upon her assumption of office. 

The DA finds this puzzling and contradictory to the statements made by Adv Madonsela at the time. At no point did she say the report should be returned back to her office – only that the report was sent to Parliament for safe-keeping. 

In fact, Adv Madonsela declared that the report is final, and not subject to any further amendments. 

Returning a report that is already finished and signed-off by the Office of the Public Protector simply doesn’t make any sense. 

The publication of the full letter will allow Members of Parliament to ensure that the Public Protector’s exact request is fully adhered to. This is vital for the proper and effective functioning of the institution. We desperately require a working parliament which acts as the apex of accountability. 

We therefore expect the Speaker to act in the interest of transparency and accountability and make public the letter without delay. Failure to do so will see the Speaker choosing the ANC over the people of South Africa.

Issued by Mabine Seabe, Spokesperson to the DA Leader, 17 October 2016