MINISTER NOW INTIMIDATING US – ACC OFFICERS

MBABANE – Some investigators of the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) feel intimidated by actions of the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Edgar Hillary.

This is contained in their letter dated April 26, 2018 addressed to Speaker Themba Msibi.
They told Msibi that they received telephone calls on Sunday (April 22, 2018) inviting them to attend a meeting on Monday (April 23) at 8:30 am.

In that meeting, which they say was also attended by Lorraine Hlophe, the ministry’s Principal Secretary, the officers further alleged that they were  viewed as disrespectful people and were ‘called to order’.
Addressing the speaker, they charged that the minister’s alleged innuendos were unfortunate, particularly because parliament was investigating the ACC, not them.

They copied the letter to Hillary, Chief Justice Bheki Maphalala, Principal Secretary Lorraine Hlophe, the deputy ACC commissioners, the attorney general and Manzini North MP Jan Sithole, the Chairman of the Parliament Select Committee investigating the ACC.

Hillary at loggerheads  with some officers of ACC

Hillary is presently at loggerheads with some officers of the ACC over the constitutionality of the Parliament select committee appointed to investigate alleged corruption at the commission.
The names of the investigators who signed the letter cannot be revealed to protect them.

Calling Hillary to order, they said his instruction that they should not appear before the select committee was baseless.
They said it was a pity the minister did not advise them on how he would protect them from charges of contempt of parliament for failure to appear before the select committee.

They said Parliament had equal powers with the High Court in terms of section 29 (1-5) of the Constitution. Citing the constitution, they said section 29 (5) empowered the committee to exercise powers, rights and privileges of the High Court or a justice of the High Court at a trial when summoning a witness to appear before the committee.

Section 129 of the Constitution, specifically provides for the powers of the Parliament committees.
Based on the Constitution and Parliamentary Privileges Act of 1967, they said they were of the view that heeding to the minister’s order and defying the select committee’s summons would have constituted a charge of contempt.  

They also cited section 19 of the Parliamentary Privileges Act, which provides that a person might render himself liable to arrest for contempt of Parliament if he neglected to comply with the summons.
Relating how they ended up appearing before the committee, the investigators said they were served with summons on April 6, 2018, inviting them to assist the committee on their terms of reference.

The terms of reference include investigating alleged maladministration at the ACC, controversies surrounding fleet management, alleged corrupt practices in the recruitment and promotion of personnel, alleged misappropriation of government funds through the special fund account and the committee is free to investigate incidental matters.
Members of the committee are MP Jan Sithole (chairman), MP Sikhumbuzo Dlamini, MP Mjuluko Dlamini, MP Menzi Dlamini and MP Michael Masilela.

Speaker’s advice sought

“We, therefore, seek the Honourable Speaker’s advice on this issue of the minister forcing us to defy a legitimate authority and further blocking us from attending the committee’s probe without any law authorising him to do so,” reads the letter signed by the ACC investigators. According to their missive, the officers mentioned that Hillary was allegedly disappointed with them for defying his orders not to honour summons to appear before the select committee.  Another allegation they levelled against the minister was that he claimed the decision to stop ACC staff from honouring the committee’s invite was not his but a Cabinet resolution. 

  “The minister, further, in his showing of his disappointment, alluded to us that those who complied with the invite and attended to the probe were not loyal to the organisation and are not fit to work for the ACC,” they told Speaker Msibi. They also mentioned that a memorandum dated April 9, 2018 from the Deputy Commission Administration, Ndiphethe Mabila, informed them that Hillary expected nobody from the ACC to make the testimonies.

The minister’s instruction caused them to miss the select committee’s sitting on April 9, 2018 despite the fact that they had been summoned to appear. However, they eventually honoured the summons and appeared before the committee on April 13, 2018, according to the letter. In an interview, Speaker Msibi confirmed receipt of the letter.

Based on the contents of the letter, he said, they were yet to convene a meeting to take a decision. He pointed out that a select committee appointed by Parliament had similar powers with that of the High Court. Msibi did not want to elaborate on the matter as it was still being discussed internally. Hillary told the Times SUNDAY he had not yet received a copy of the letter. The minister said he was unaware that the officers had written a letter to the Speaker. He said he would reserve his comments until he got the copy.
MP Jan Sithole, the Chairman of the Parliament Select Committee investigating the ACC, confirmed receipt of the copy of the letter.
“For now it is for the Speaker to respond as the letter is directed to his office,” he said.
The MP said the committee could react, without fear, favour or prejudice, if the speaker were to refer the matter to them.

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