Here are the four women and two men (one dodgy) shortlisted for top anti-corruption job

The interviews for the country’s top anti-crime and anti-corruption job, the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP), will be held from 8 to 10 December 2025. Bookmark it because it is one of the few top jobs that determines South Africa’s future. Six of 32 candidates made the final cut for public interviews: four are women, two are men.

The interviewing panel is chaired by Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi, assisted by Chris Nissen (chairperson of the Human Rights Commission), Advocate Nthabiseng Sepanya-Mogale (chairperson of the Commission on Gender Equality), Professor Somadoda Fikeni (the chairperson of the Public Service Commission), as well as a representative each of the Black Lawyers Association and of the National Association of Democratic Lawyers.

NDPP Shamila Batohi retires in January after a term in which she has had to reform the institution gutted by State Capture and neutered by the former president Jacob Zuma, who understood that to stay out of jail he needed a pliant NDPP. Batohi has made some progress but not enough to see a single bigwig in orange overalls, a fact that has harmed the good work she and her team have done to change the trajectory of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

The next person will have to rapidly ramp up successful prosecutions and make a bigger mark in the battle against corruption, which has morphed from kleptocracy to State Capture and now the active criminalisation of the state.

This is clear from the proceedings of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Criminality, Political Interference and Corruption in the Criminal Justice System (Madlanga Commission), as well as its twin, the Parliamentary Ad-Hoc Inquiry. Both were set up to investigate KwaZulu-Natal top cop Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi’s bombshell claims that criminal networks have infiltrated the criminal justice system by wielding political influence.

The testimony and claims by and against crime kingpin Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, who also won a police contract worth R360-million, appear to bear this out. This week, he alleged that he gave former police minister Bheki Cele R500,000 cash and that he paid for iced police minister Senzo Mchunu’s comrades to attend the ANC January 8 events in Cape Town earlier this year.

The next head of the NPA will need to be hard-charged, experienced and have the ability to manage a complex organisation while delivering prosecutions to fend off the next stage of corruption that is now becoming clear. Lawyers have questioned why Kubayi is leading the panel as the job requires an independent candidate, but other specialists say she has been an energetic Justice Minister, miles better than her predecessor Thembi Simelane.

Read more: Process to appoint Shamila Batohi’s successor begins, with Ramaphosa naming selection panel

The person who many regard as the ideal candidate, Andy Mothibe, head of the Special Investigating Unit, did not apply as he enjoys his role. Neither did any of Batohi’s three deputies.

The top six candidates who will be interviewed are:

1. Advocate Nicolette Astraid Bell

Advocate Bell currently serves as the Director of Public Prosecutions in the Western Cape at the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

Her previous roles include Acting Director of Public Prosecutions in the Western Cape, Senior Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions and Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in Cape Town, Senior State Advocate and State Advocate at the Johannesburg Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, as well as Public Prosecutor at the Krugersdorp Magistrate’s Court.

Assessment: She is regarded as “together”, a good manager, and her staff like her. She has a good track record as a prosecutor but has not been a deputy NDPP before. The NPA has three deputies to the top prosecutor.

2. Advocate Hermione Cronje

Advocate Cronje is presently a freelance international anti-corruption and asset recovery specialist, working on short-term contracts with international development institutions and South African non-governmental organisations.

Her previous experience includes serving as a consultant to the Stolen Assets Recovery Initiative, independent commissioner for the European Union Anti-Corruption Initiative in Ukraine, strategic adviser to the GlobE Network, consultant to Open Secrets, researcher at the Democratic Governance & Rights Unit at the University of Cape Town, and Investigating Director at the NPA.

She has also practised as an advocate of the high court and member of the Cape Bar, and held roles in the Asset Forfeiture Unit as Regional Head, Senior State Advocate and Junior State Advocate. Earlier roles include Professional Assistant to the NDPP at the NPA and Researcher to the Select Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development in Parliament.

Assessment: Cronje came in as the inaugural Investigating Director of the NPA (a job that later became the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption, now led by Andrea Johnson). She left after a blow-up with Batohi and reportedly also did not make many friends in the institution. Given its state at the time, this may be a good thing, but a big part of the role is leading people. The NPA has about 4,500 staff.

3. Advocate Andrea Johnson

Advocate Johnson is currently the Investigating Director at the National Prosecuting Authority. Her previous positions include Senior Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, prosecutor at the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, Junior State Advocate at the NPA, Senior State Advocate and Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions at the Directorate of Special Operations, as well as National Coordinator for Organised Crime. She has also served as Acting Special Director at the NPA.

Assessment: Johnson has a reputation as an excellent prosecutor and she has set up the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption, the best chance SA has of fighting organised crime and corruption. She is the most experienced prosecutor in the field. Her appearance before Parliament’s ad-hoc inquiry into Mkhwanazi’s allegations did not go well and this could be a mark-down for her. Johnson has the temperament for the role and is fearless, but her management smarts are not great and she would need support, say insiders who support her.

4. Advocate Xolisile Jennifer Khanyile

Advocate Khanyile currently serves as Chairperson of the Global Coalition to Fight Financial Crime. Her previous experience includes Director at the Financial Intelligence Centre, Director of Public Prosecutions in the Free State, Acting Deputy National Director of Public Prosecutions and Head of the NPS, Acting Director of Public Prosecutions in South Gauteng, Senior Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in the Asset Forfeiture Unit, Senior State Advocate in Johannesburg, and earlier roles as District Court Prosecutor, Control Prosecutor in Madadeni and Regional Court Control Prosecutor in Newcastle.

Assessment: Khanyile is regarded as a frontrunner candidate. Together with former Treasury director-general Ismail Momoniat, she has been a mover and shaker behind getting SA off the FATF (Financial Action Task Force) grey list, one of the best pieces of progress this year. Her experience fighting financial crime and her long history as a prosecutor could serve her well. She is a former director of the Financial Intelligence Centre.

5. Advocate Adrian Carl Mopp

Advocate Mopp is currently the Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in the Western Cape at the NPA. His previous roles include Regional Head and Deputy Regional Head for Special Operations in the Western Cape, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in the Asset Forfeiture Unit, Senior State Advocate in the Investigating Directorate for organised crime and at the Office of the Auditor-General, and Public Prosecutor in Kimberley and Makhanda. Earlier experience includes practising as a candidate attorney at Frank Sithole & Company, serving as a detective in the South African Police Service, and chairing both the Tax Board in KwaZulu-Natal and the Municipal Bid Appeals Tribunal.

Assessment: With fabulous experience, Mopp is regarded as a hard-working and highly qualified technocrat. He has experience fighting organised crime. It is interesting that he has been a detective at the SAPS.

6. Advocate Menzi Simelane

Advocate Simelane currently practises as an advocate with the Johannesburg Society of Advocates. His previous positions include Special Adviser to Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, National Director of Public Prosecutions at the NPA, Director-General of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, Chief Legal Counsel at the Competition Commission, and Research Assistant at the Agricultural Research Council.

Assessment: The shortlisting panel must have been asleep at this point. Simelane was an NDPP under Zuma and is widely regarded as ill fitting for the role. A judgment following a case brought by the DA found his appointment invalid because Zuma’s decision to appoint him was irrational. The Ginwala Inquiry (into the fitness of axed NDPP Vusi Pikoli to hold the job) found him wanting. DM

Submissions may be sent to the Secretariat at NDPPpanel@justice.gov.za by no later than 5 December 2025. The Panel is still targeting 10-11 December 2025 for the interview process.

Daily Maverick used biographies supplied by the Department of Justice and reported an assessment.