"Zille violated Constitution", Public Protector

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Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane has found that Western Cape Premier Helen Zille violated the executive members ethics code by exposing herself to the risk of a conflict of interest by offering assistance to a workshop programme involving her son in 2014.

ANC member of the Western Cape legislature Cameron Dugmore laid a complaint with the Public Protector in 2017, claiming that Zille breached the provincial government's code of ethics by influencing officials to allow her son, Paul Maree, access to tablets purchased by the Western Cape Education Department.

"So section 136(2) of the Constitution requires the premier not to expose herself to any situation involving the risk of a conflict between her official responsibilities and her private interests. So in this instance she violated the Constitution, especially the Executive Members Ethics Act," said the Public Protector on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Business Live reported that Mkhwebane said she was standing by her findings in a previous case against Zille that the Western Cape premier's tweets on colonialism were racist.

https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/...involvement-in-sons-teaching-project-20181219
 
She is not the first to violate the constitution, and certainly won't be last. All these politicians, ANC, DA, EFF... all cut from the same cloth and eat out of the same pot. I wish I had politicians as friends so I could eat out the pots too... I would be happy with the left overs...
 
Her response

Press statement by Premier Helen Zille on the Public Protector’s Report and Finding
19 December 2018

The Public Protector has once again, reflected her severely limited understanding of the constitution and the law, and I will, yet again, be taking her finding against me on review to the High Court.
I reject out of hand that:
1) There was any conflict of interest between my public role as Premier, and the fact that I supported my son, a mathematics teacher in Khayelitsha at the time, to borrow equipment of the Western Cape Education Department in order to run free matric preparation workshops in disadvantages schools; and
2) Insofar as there may have been a perception of a conflict of interest, I fulfilled the requirements of the law in mitigating it.
I wish to stress that if I faced the same situation today, as I did then, in 2014, I would do exactly the same because it was the right thing to do. The Director General of the Province, Advocate Brent Gerber, would also do the same thing again, because it was entirely lawful, constitutional, and appropriate in the circumstances.
The facts are these:
1) My son was a mathematics teacher in Khayelitsha.
2) He had prepared free matric revision programmes that he wanted to give, at no charge, during the October School holidays to disadvantaged learners.
3) He presented the revision workshop at the school where he taught and he offered the same revision courses to other schools. This offer was warmly accepted. However, at some of them, the digital platform was inadequate.
4) He mentioned this to me, and said he would probably have to cancel the workshops.
5) I thought it would be a pity if they did not go ahead, particularly for the learners. I mentioned this to the Director General of the Province at my normal weekly meeting where I raise a range of public queries I have received.
6) The DG reminded me that the Western Cape Education Department had acquired tablets precisely for this kind of usage, in a Cabinet mandated programme, and that they were due to be delivered at the beginning of the fourth term.
7) I asked whether they were potentially available for use during the holidays for the free matric mathematics revision, which would be in everyone’s interests, especially the learners.
8) On enquiring, the DG established that 150 had already arrived and would be available through the Western Cape Education Department.
9) My son then contacted the WCED and arranged to borrow the tablets for the free workshops, and returned them at the end of the holiday, as agreed, in mint condition.
10) Everyone benefited. There was no cost involved, no conflict of interest involved, and the feedback was very good.
11) The law and the Public Service Commission distinguishes between a Conflict of Interest (where a public interest contradicts a private interest), and a Congruence of interest, where there is no conflict involved. The latters was the case in this situation.
12) On the question of the risk of PERCEPTION of conflict I took care to prevent this, by writing a letter to the Director General, which I copied to other officials, saying that the tablets had to be made available to anyone else wanting to use them for the same purposes. In this way I ensured that my son would not receive special treatment. I wrote: “I just want to make it clear, as discussed with Minister Schafer, that these tablets should be available for use by ALL service providers who provide FREE services to students in the run-up to the examinations till the end of the year (not necessarily only matrics).”
13) Apart from the legal errors in the report, part of the remedial action proposed is also unlawful. This is another reason why I will take the report on a full review.





Does indeed look like the pubic protector screwed the pooch on this one.
 
Sinbad said:
Her response

Press statement by Premier Helen Zille on the Public Protector’s Report and Finding
19 December 2018

The Public Protector has once again, reflected her severely limited understanding of the constitution and the law, and I will, yet again, be taking her finding against me on review to the High Court.
I reject out of hand that:
1) There was any conflict of interest between my public role as Premier, and the fact that I supported my son, a mathematics teacher in Khayelitsha at the time, to borrow equipment of the Western Cape Education Department in order to run free matric preparation workshops in disadvantages schools; and
2) Insofar as there may have been a perception of a conflict of interest, I fulfilled the requirements of the law in mitigating it.
I wish to stress that if I faced the same situation today, as I did then, in 2014, I would do exactly the same because it was the right thing to do. The Director General of the Province, Advocate Brent Gerber, would also do the same thing again, because it was entirely lawful, constitutional, and appropriate in the circumstances.
The facts are these:
1) My son was a mathematics teacher in Khayelitsha.
2) He had prepared free matric revision programmes that he wanted to give, at no charge, during the October School holidays to disadvantaged learners.
3) He presented the revision workshop at the school where he taught and he offered the same revision courses to other schools. This offer was warmly accepted. However, at some of them, the digital platform was inadequate.
4) He mentioned this to me, and said he would probably have to cancel the workshops.
5) I thought it would be a pity if they did not go ahead, particularly for the learners. I mentioned this to the Director General of the Province at my normal weekly meeting where I raise a range of public queries I have received.
6) The DG reminded me that the Western Cape Education Department had acquired tablets precisely for this kind of usage, in a Cabinet mandated programme, and that they were due to be delivered at the beginning of the fourth term.
7) I asked whether they were potentially available for use during the holidays for the free matric mathematics revision, which would be in everyone’s interests, especially the learners.
8) On enquiring, the DG established that 150 had already arrived and would be available through the Western Cape Education Department.
9) My son then contacted the WCED and arranged to borrow the tablets for the free workshops, and returned them at the end of the holiday, as agreed, in mint condition.
10) Everyone benefited. There was no cost involved, no conflict of interest involved, and the feedback was very good.
11) The law and the Public Service Commission distinguishes between a Conflict of Interest (where a public interest contradicts a private interest), and a Congruence of interest, where there is no conflict involved. The latters was the case in this situation.
12) On the question of the risk of PERCEPTION of conflict I took care to prevent this, by writing a letter to the Director General, which I copied to other officials, saying that the tablets had to be made available to anyone else wanting to use them for the same purposes. In this way I ensured that my son would not receive special treatment. I wrote: “I just want to make it clear, as discussed with Minister Schafer, that these tablets should be available for use by ALL service providers who provide FREE services to students in the run-up to the examinations till the end of the year (not necessarily only matrics).”
13) Apart from the legal errors in the report, part of the remedial action proposed is also unlawful. This is another reason why I will take the report on a full review.





Does indeed look like the pubic protector screwed the pooch on this one.
Click to expand...
Beat me to it :p
Source
 
these BS accusations by the PP need to come much thicker and faster if they're intended to distract from the real crimes of JZ
or they have to simply stop cold if the PP is meant to focus on issues that matter

So she's failing no matter what her goals are, that's next level pathetic!
 
Oh lovely, I can't wait to see the response on black twitter. For once I actually think they are going to call BS on this complete waste of time and smear campaign by ANC.

ANC as so utterly corrupt and violate the constitution so regularly they desperately need to show other parties are the same
 
Surely there are more important things the pp could be doing, you know, like the endless ****ing looting by likes of zumas, every single anc member, every single public employee?
 
She needs to be held liable for costs in her personal capacity if she loses this as she doesn't seem willing to learn. Or is just incompetent but the ANC committee tasked with reviewing her competence are refusing to institute proceedings.
 
koeks525 said:
She is not the first to violate the constitution, and certainly won't be last. All these politicians, ANC, DA, EFF... all cut from the same cloth and eat out of the same pot. I wish I had politicians as friends so I could eat out the pots too... I would be happy with the left overs...
Click to expand...

So you don't approve of the Premier of the province assisting underprivileged learners to pass matric? Sjoe, you're a mean one Mr. Grinch!
 
R13... said:
She needs to be held liable for costs in her personal capacity if she loses this as she doesn't seem willing to learn. Or is just incompetent but the ANC committee tasked with reviewing her competence are refusing to institute proceedings.
Click to expand...

It astounds me that there can be any conflict of the Premier providing education to underprivileged learners in her province. There was no personal gain, whatsoever, the entire basis was philanthropic.
 
Even if she is not personally held liable, she acts on behalf of the State, then the government fiscus must be drained to cover the costs. At least we will know where the money went.
 
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