Public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane with witness Sphelo Samuel (far right) at the Vrede dairy farm. (Photo: Supplied) 
All day, the suspended Mkhwebane’s legal representative, Advocate Dali Mpofu, reminded Samuel during cross-examination that the PP denied Samuel had ever been present, that she did not remember him and that his version “should be dismissed with contempt”.
However, after two hours of searing cross-examination by Mpofu who had labelled Samuel as “sexist”, a disgruntled employee, and as suffering from a superiority complex, the witness produced a photograph corroborating his version of events.
Mpofu had consistently told the committee that no evidence existed of the meeting or any other communication between the witness and his client as the “Vrede” investigation file sent to the PP head office had since “evaporated”.
Until that moment it was Samuel’s word against that of Mkhwebane.
The photograph was introduced by evidence leader Advocate Ncumisa Mayosi after the lunch break, leading Mpofu to charge that he had been “ambushed”.
Samuel explained that he had been contacted by a colleague who had also been present at the site visit and who had taken a snap of the witness standing right next to Mkhwebane (dressed in pink):
“My own photographs excluded me because I was taking them. These photographs were sent to me by someone else who was also there.”
Mpofu said he had not been forwarded this vital piece of evidence before it was presented to the committee and objected to the manner in which it was introduced.
Previously Samuel had testified that Mkhwebane sought to remove the names of implicated political officials — premier Ace Magashule and MEC for agriculture Mosebenzi Zwane — from her final report on the Gupta-linked R216-million project.
He also testified that Mkhwebane had hounded out senior managers, replacing them with officials from the State Security Agency.
On Tuesday, former CEO Vussy Mahlangu, generally sketched by witnesses as Mkhwebane’s “enforcer”, testified.
Several suspensions occurred under his watch including that of whistleblower Tebogo Kekana, Samuel and Basani Baloyi who is due to testify.
Baloyi was dismissed by Mkhwebane in October 2019. The public protector subsequently suspended three other senior officials; executive manager Pona Mogaladi, chief investigator Abongile Madiba, chief investigator Lesedi Sekele, and Kekana.
Mahlangu was appointed to the PP’s office pending the outcome of disciplinary proceedings related to his position of Deputy Director General at the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform.
The charge by Baloyi was that Mahlangu, apart from acting as Mkhwebane’s enforcer, had interfered with an investigation by the PP into Gugu Nkwinti, Minister of Agriculture at the time.
Mpofu, who was unavailable on Tuesday, was replaced by Advocate Bright Shabalala on behalf of Mkhwebane.
His early gambit was a continuation of Mpofu’s previous attack on witnesses, i.e., that Mahlangu was a “phantom” witness who had been prepared by the evidence leaders and that he had not been keen to testify.
He had preferred, he replied, to give written responses but evidence leaders had provided him with 10,000 pages which they suggested he read as: “I was implicated”.
Mahlangu said he felt he had dealt with all issues and he felt “touched on my name in issues concluded or not.”
Mkhwebane was suspended from office on 9 June. The parliamentary impeachment hearings got underway on July 11.
The hearings continue. DM