Following last Thursday's surprise notice by the NPA of its intention to suspend Specialised Commercial Crimes Court senior prosecutor Glynnis Breytenbach, the DA said yesterday it would, at the next meeting of parliament's justice portfolio committee , ask acting NPA head Nomgcobo Jiba to explain the "shocking" action against Breytenbach.

The NPA told Breytenbach of her imminent suspension citing allegations "abuse of power" and asked her to give reasons why this should not be effected by today.

Describing the NPA's action as a "sad state of affairs", Dene Smuts, a DA MP and the party's justice spokesman, said action of the kind taken against Breytenbach was "nothing new" but "it has to be put to a stop".

"Good people have either been moved or moved out. The NPA is pivotal in the fight against corruption and all will be lost if this kind of behaviour continues," said Smuts.

The portfolio committee will convene after February 22, and Smuts said she would deal with the "snakes and ladders game they are playing with people's careers" at the meeting.

Breytenbach's lawyer, Gerhard Wagenaar, said yesterday that his client had denied abusing her powers and had written to the NPA to request more details about the alleged abuse.

In its letter to her, the NPA cited only an alleged abuse of powers in the criminal investigation of the multibillion-rand Sishen iron ore mining deal.

A portion of the prospecting rights to the mine was initially awarded to Imperial Crown Trading, whose beneficiaries include President Jacob Zuma's son, Duduzane, Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe's partner, Gugu Mtshali, and Jagdish Parekh, who heads the Gupta family's business empire.

After a challenge by Kumba Iron Ore, the award to Imperial was invalidated by the Pretoria High Court last year.

Speculation is rife about the reasons for Breytenbach's pending suspension.

Former national director of public prosecutions, Vusi Pikoli, described her as a dedicated and extremely competent prosecutor.

Prosecutors at the NPA believe that Breytenbach's reluctance to drop fraud charges against suspended crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli is one of the reasons for the action against her.

Mdluli was to face charges relating to discounts he received on the purchase of a BMW, and for allegedly registering his relatives, girlfriends and their families as paid covert police intelligence operatives.

Citing "insufficient evidence", the NPA provisionally withdrew the charges against Mdluli in December, on the instructions of Breytenbach's newly appointed boss, Lawrence Mrwebi.

NPA spokesman Mthunzi Mhaga could not be reached yesterday.