By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Constitutional Court has dismissed public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s application to rescind, or reverse, the judgment that cleared the way for an impeachment process against her in parliament.
In a unanimous order from nine justices, the apex court said her application did not establish any rescindable errors in the judgment.
In a short ruling delivered on Friday, the apex court said it had elected not to hear Mkhwebane’s rescission application, which was widely slammed as ill-conceived and legally baseless, without hearing any further argument on it.
“The court has concluded that the rescission application does not establish any rescindable errors in the judgment. There are also no exceptional circumstances that warrant the rescission of the judgment.
“Therefore, the court has concluded that the application should be dismissed as no case has been made out for rescission. The court has concluded that the application for direct access should be dismissed as no case has been made out for direct access,” it ruled.
The ruling means that Mkhwebane’s efforts to interdict President Cyril Ramaphosa from suspending her, and to block Parliament from proceeding with its investigation into her fitness to hold office, pending the outcome of the Constitutional Court’s ruling on her rescission application, have now been rendered moot.
The ConCourt further decided not to award costs.
Speaker of the National Assembly Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has since welcomed the ruling.
“The Speaker of the National Assembly welcomes the decision of the [ConCourt] dismissing a rescission application by Public Protector,” Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said in a tweet.
Meanwhile, Mkhwebane has opened a criminal case against Ismail Abramjee and his unknown accomplice or accomplices.
Abramjee is alleged to be the man who had claimed to be aware of the ConCourt judgment regarding Mkhwebane’s rescission application, which was leaked.
It is said that Abramjee sent a message to advocate Andrew Breitenbach, the lead senior counsel for Mapisa-Nqakula, saying that he had it “on good authority” that the ConCourt had decided to dismiss Mkhwebane’s application.
He also said the apex court would make the decision public before last week Friday.
The charges, the Public Protector laid at the Brooklyn Police Station in Pretoria on Thursday, include contempt of court, defeating or obstructing the course of justice, and contraventions of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act (PCCA).