Surprise as Ramaphosa appoints SIU boss Andy Mothibi as SA’s new NDPP

President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed advocate Andy Mothibi to lead the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) on Tuesday, a surprising decision after Mothibi was not among the six candidates interviewed for the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) position.

Mothibi is the current head of the country’s Special Investigating Unit (SIU).

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In a statement issued on Tuesday night, 6 January, Ramaphosa said Mothibi would begin leading the NPA from 1 February. Mothibi will replace advocate Shamila Batohi, who retires at the end of January after seven years in the position.

President Ramaphosa had, in November last year, appointed a seven-person advisory panel to lead an “open and transparent” selection process for a new NDPP.

The panel, chaired by Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi and composed of leaders of the legal fraternity and Chapter 9 institutions, interviewed six of an initial 32 candidates over two days in December. Those interviewed included:

• Director of Public Prosecutions in the Western Cape, advocate Nicolette Bell;
• Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in the Western Cape, advocate Adrian Mopp;
• Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac) head, Andrea Johnson;
• Former NPA Investigating Directorate (ID) head, Hermione Cronje;
• Former Free State Director of Public Prosecutions, advocate Xolisile Khanyile; and
• Former NDPP under Jacob Zuma, advocate Menzi Simelane.

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Khanyile was widely regarded as the frontrunner and Kubayi’s preferred candidate for the position. But Daily Maverick’s Rebecca Davis reported that Cronje was the only person interviewed for the NDPP role who was capable of reforming the troubled NPA.

Read more: The NPA is fixable, but only if we confront the crisis, says Hermione Cronje

The panel was expected to submit three short-listed candidates for recommendation to Ramaphosa.

However, Ramaphosa said in the statement that the panel had instead concluded that none of the six candidates was suitable for the position.

“The panel concluded its process and submitted its report to the President on the 12th of December 2025. In its report, the panel advised the President that none of the interviewed candidates were suitable for the role of NDPP,” read the statement.

“Accordingly, President Cyril Ramaphosa has in terms of section 179(1) (a) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, read with section 10 of the National Prosecuting Authority Act, 1998 (Act 32 of 1998), decided to appoint advocate Jan Lekgoa [Andy] Mothibi, with effect from 1 February 2026, as the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP).”

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According to the statement, Mothibi began his career as a public prosecutor in the Johannesburg and Soweto magistrates’ courts, and also served as a magistrate in the Johannesburg and Soweto magistrates’ courts.

“Advocate Mothibi has previously served in various public and private sector roles managing legal, compliance and risk management operations, including at SARS [South African Revenue Service] as Head of Corporate Legal Services and Head of Governance,” it read.

In Mothibi’s place, Ramaphosa said he had appointed SIU chief operations officer, Leonard Lekgetho, as the acting head of the SIU from 1 February.

“Mr Lekgetho is currently serving as the Chief Operations Officer of the SIU. He has over 22 years of forensic investigations experience, including serving as the Forensic Investigator at the then Directorate of Special Operations, which was known as the Scorpions,” he said. DM