By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Western Cape High Court has ruled President Cyril Ramaphosa’s suspension of Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane invalid and improper.
Mkhwebane approached the High Court in June to challenge her suspension from office pending the outcome of the parliamentary process to determine her fitness to hold office.
Mkhwebane’s suspension came after she sent Ramaphosa a list of questions about the theft of foreign currency at his Phala Phala farm in 2020.
In a ruling delivered on Friday, the court found that “from the objective facts, the decision of [Mkhwebane] to investigate the president and to put 31 questions to him, prompted the president not to wait a day more and to immediately suspend her”.
“Clearly, when the events that unfolded between the 7-10 June 2022, discussed above, are objectively examined, it is irresistible to conclude that the decision of the president was improper.”
However the High Court ruling will not have any effect on her suspension until it is confirmed by the Constitutional Court.
According to section 172(2)(a) of the Constitution, the High Court may “make an order concerning the constitutional validity of an Act of Parliament, a provincial Act or any conduct of the President, but an order of constitutional invalidity has no force unless it is confirmed by the Constitutional Court”.