EFF calls on Mkhwebane to resign

The Economic Freedom Fighters have called on Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane to resign after she backtracked on plans to square off with the Reserve Bank in court.

Mkhwebane announced on Monday that she had reversed her decision after taking legal advice. She plans to pay legal costs of the application.

But the EFF said that was not good enough.

"We call on her to do the honourable thing and step down. This is not only for an illegitimate and dangerous remedial action‚ but also for the audacity of offering to use public funds to pay for her incompetent decisions‚" the party said in a statement.

"If she really is genuine in her realisation of how flawed her remedial action is‚ why did she wait for others to initiate a court action? More fundamentally‚ she should be protecting public funds‚ not using them wastefully. Thus‚ if she is genuine‚ she should be offering to pay these legal costs personally."

The legal battle followed a finding in which Mkhwebane had instructed parliament to enact a constitutional amendment to expand the mandate of the Reserve Bank.

The Reserve Bank then launched proceedings to challenge Mkhwebane's findings in court. Parliament and national Treasury followed suit.

Mkhwebane initially indicated that she would defend her decision‚ which stemmed from a report on a Reserve Bank bailout granted to Absa predecessor Bankorp.

Mkhwebane found against Absa‚ ordering it to repay more than R1-billion‚ and ruled that the Reserve Bank had failed in its duty to recoup the money.

- TimesLIVE