Finance Minister Tito Mboweni stands behind top Treasury official

Finance minister Tito Mboweni has no confidence in public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane – and will be taking her report on National Treasury director-general Dondo Mogajane on judicial review.

Responding to a question during a pre-budget media briefing on Wednesday about whether he still had full confidence in Mogajane‚ Mboweni responded in the affirmative – and then immediately fired a broadside at Mkhwebane.

Hours later, Mkhwebane hit back, saying she would lodge a formal complaint against Mboweni over his comments.

In a report published last year‚ Mkhwebane found that Mogajane had failed to declare a traffic offence conviction when he was being considered for the position of Treasury director-general‚ and recommended that remedial steps be taken against him.

“I think the public protector has a problem,” Mboweni said.

“I’m saying this as strongly as I can‚ knowing fully well that the office of the public protector is a constitutional structure . . . but the incumbent [Mkhwebane] has a problem.

“I hope one day I can have a conversation with the incumbent without interfering‚ but just to advise.

“She has made a finding that Speedy Dondo [Mogajane] must be disciplined – he has a speeding fine. If I could take an opinion poll here‚ most of you have speeding fines‚” he said.

Mboweni said it was the collective view in the finance ministry that Mkhwebane’s findings were wrong.

“So‚ I’m taking the decision on review and legal counsel has already drafted the affidavit,” he said.

“I should have signed it yesterday but I didn’t have sufficient time.” Mboweni said Mogajane enjoyed his full confidence. He described him as “a hard-working civil servant and very nice”.

“Sometimes I think he is too Christian‚ that’s why we end up with that speech with full quotations from the Bible‚” he said in jest.

Mkhwebane issued a report in December on improper conduct regarding Mogajane’s application for the position‚ and his subsequent appointment to the position.

She found that had failed to disclose a criminal record on the Z83 application form he completed for the position.

She recommended that President Cyril Ramaphosa should take appropriate action against Mogajane for “blatantly and dishonestly” making false representation of material facts in his Z83 form‚ within 30 days of the report.

Mogajane was found guilty of contravening the Road Traffic Act in Kempton Park in 2011 by engaging in reckless and negligent driving and earned himself a criminal record when he paid an admission of guilt fine after being caught speeding.

Last week‚ Ramaphosa asked higher education minister Naledi Pandor to take disciplinary steps against Mogajane.

Mkhwebane said in a statement that she wanted to “register her disquiet” about Mboweni’s comments.

“[I would] like to stress the point that this was not merely a ‘traffic fine’ as suggested by Mr Mboweni and other critics‚ but a conviction by a court of law.

“The conviction ought to have been disclosed.”

She said she would be writing to Ramaphosa and National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete to “report ministers who interfere with the functioning of her office in violation of the constitution”.