By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Andrea Johnson has asked to be released from her duties as the head of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC), which is a permanent, independent and prosecution-led anti-corruption unit inside National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
Johnson faced a series of claims made over recent days that have placed the unit under intense scrutiny.
In a resignation letter addressed to National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) boss Advocate Andy Mothibi and President Cyril Ramaphosa, Johnson requested to be released from office immediately, asking that her contractual three-month notice period be waived.
“This is a difficult request to make given the absolute love and commitment I have had for the position of being the Investigating Director of IDAC,” she wrote.
She said much of the criticism stemmed from cases IDAC had pursued involving officials in the South African Police Service’s Crime Intelligence division.
“The attacks, in all its forms, has brought an extreme amount of negative attention not just to me, but to IDAC and the NPA,” she wrote.
“I cannot be the reason that there is so much negative attention and reputational risk to IDAC and the NPA.”
She also revealed that she had already applied for retirement, having reached the age of 55, but feared that process could become the subject of legal challenges involving both the Presidency and the NDPP.
Instead, she requested that her resignation take effect within 24 hours by agreement.
“The NPA and IDAC must and will always come first and I believe that this resignation in the manner proposed would serve the institutions and the country best,” Johnson wrote.
She thanked Ramaphosa for the opportunity to lead IDAC and said she remained indebted to the President, the country and the NPA after 30 years of service.
NPA spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago confirmed receipt of the letter and told Fullview that the matter is under consideration.
Last month, her attempt to arrest Crime Intelligence head Lieutenant-General Dumisani Khumalo and Major-General Nosipho Madondo prompted an extraordinary public intervention by KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, who warned that the SAPS was “facing a war” and that “there are many players” in this game.
This prompted the ministry of justice to establish the inaugural Ombud, with a mandate to investigate complaints of abuse of power, improper conduct and maladministration within the anti-corruption unit.
The IDAC Ombud is mandated to investigate allegations of abuse of power, probe allegations of improper conduct, maladministration and related complaints at the directorate.
The IDAC Ombud Office was established in terms of Section 22A of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Act, 1998, as amended by the National Prosecuting Authority Act, 2024. The legislation empowers the Minister, after consultation with the Chief Justice, to appoint the IDAC Ombud.