Political analyst, Somadoda Fikeni, says the new National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP), Advocate Shamila Batohi, may face pressure to act swiftly against those who have been implicated at the current commissions of inquiry.
Batohi will officially take up her position as the new NDPP on Friday. She was appointed in December by President Cyril Ramaphosa and is the first woman to lead the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
She is the former director of public prosecutions in KwaZulu-Natal and senior legal adviser at the International Criminal Court. During her interview for the position, she likened taking up the NDPP position to jumping into a shark tank.
“I think that Advocate Batohi will face the pressure of a position that no one has ever finished a term since the end of apartheid. More importantly is the fact that some of the senior members of the NPA are implicated in commissions of inquiry. So she may worry about some of the people within the organisation who may not be team players. And lastly is how other organs, which feed into the NPA – such as the HAWKS, SIU and the police – will do their work so that the NPA is able to act,” says Fikeni.
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The NDPPs over the years:
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