Madonsela - more talk, less courts

 Advocate Thuli Madonsela has appealed to senior state leaders not to launch a court challenge to the Public Protector’s Nkandla report. 

 

Madonsela says a challenge will only lead to expensive and protracted legal wrangling and that she would rather sit down with leaders in government's security cluster. 

 

Madonsela wants to discuss claims that parts of her report are irrational and contradictory.

 

The Public Protector says the departments of Public Works and Defence have started implementing her recommendations and she says she needs to know which departments are involved in the security cluster’s threatened court action.

 

“I have written to the Minister of Justice but it was only recent, asking for clarification on what is it that is not understood, and also offered to assist them, whoever is having problems understanding, because clearly the department of Public Works did not indicate that it did not understand, and the bulk of the implementation process falls on the shoulders of the department of public works."

 

"The Department of Defence also did not indicate that it had any difficulties in implementing the remedial action."

 

Madonsela says the Presidency hasn’t questioned any of her Nkandla findings or recommendations.

 

“The Presidency has not formally indicated that there are any problems. The media release was saying that it’s the security cluster. It would be difficult for the security cluster to take the president’s issue, because when you make findings against several institutions, it’s not up to one institution to defend another. If the Presidency has any problems, it needs to deal with me directly – not through the security cluster, because the findings against the security cluster are different from the findings against the president.”

- eNCA