NPA head distances herself from terms of reference in Andrew Chauke inquiry

The Head of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Shamila Batohi, has distanced herself from the final Terms of Reference set out by the President for the inquiry into the fitness of Johannesburg Prosecutions Boss, Andrew Chauke, to hold office.

Batohi was cross-examined in the inquiry established by President Cyril Ramaphosa to investigate allegations that Chauke made politically motivated prosecutorial decisions.

It was Batohi herself who lodged a complaint against Chauke with President Ramaphosa, ultimately leading to the current inquiry. However, during her testimony, Batohi stated that the final published Terms of Reference differed significantly from the draft she had submitted.

"We did submit a draft to the President but what the President adopted subsequently is quite different from the draft and we didn’t input any draft that the President had," Batohi stated.

Despite being repeatedly asked to connect her allegations against Chauke to the inquiry's Terms of Reference, Batohi admitted that she had not familiarised herself with them.

The inquiry has now requested the draft document Batohi sent to the President. This comparison will be made against the Terms of Reference adopted by the President to better establish the core allegations against Chauke.