Prosecutions boss Shamila Batohi under pressure to clarify her comments about NPA being 'infiltrated'
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has written to National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza, calling for an urgent debate on what it believes is an institutional crisis at the authority.
FILE: NPA head, Shamila Batohi, appeared before Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) in Cape Town on 20 November 2024. Picture: Phando Jikelo/Parliament
CAPE TOWN - National Prosecution Authority (NPA) head Shamila Batohi is under mounting pressure from Parliament to account for statements she made last week about the NPA being 'infiltrated' by people who don't have the rule of law at heart.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has written to National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza calling for an urgent debate on what it believes is an institutional crisis at the authority.
ALSO READ:
- NPA's Batohi defiant as MPs call for her head over botched Omotoso trial
- Political parties split over calls to fire NPA boss Batohi
On Friday, ActionSA called for Batohi's head over the recent bungles in high-profile matters.
The DA, on the other hand, said while it wanted her to account for the failures, it would not support calls for her removal.
The EFF says it's gravely concerned about Batohi's remarks in the televised interview following this week's Free State High Court ruling on the extradition of an accused in the asbestos corruption matter - Moroadi Cholota, the erstwhile personal assistant of former Premier Ace Magashule.
In its letter to the Speaker, the EFF says Batohi's comments that undue influence is being exerted on the NPA constitutes a declaration of an institutional crisis.
"The National Director of Public Prosecution’s remarks suggest that these legal obligations are currently being compromised, weakening the prosecutorial machinery of the Republic," the EFF writes in its letter.
"The implications of her statement are far-reaching. In a country besieged by a crisis of femicide and systemic corruption, any infiltration of the NPA threatens to collapse public confidence in the state’s ability to secure justice and accountability."
EFF chief whip Nontando Nolutshungu says Parliament can't delay in responding to the alarm raised by Batohi, and it must debate whether her comments pose a threat to the justice system, the rule of law and constitutional democracy.
Meanwhile, the EFF's justice representative Rebecca Mohlala has requested that Batohi appear before the justice portfolio committee this week to clarify her comments.
The party also wants Justice Minister Mmamaloko Kubayi to accompany her to provide it with her plans to safeguard the NPA from infiltration.
Batohi has less than a year to go before reaching retirement age although she's only served six years of a ten year tenure.