The Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Wednesday it will interdict any appointment emerging from what it describes as a “flawed” National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) interview process.

Last month, the party called for the removal of Johannesburg Society of Advocates' advocate Menzi Simelane from the shortlisted candidates being interviewed for the role.

ActionSA joined the DA in rejecting Simelane’s possible appointment, stating that he was “not a fit and proper candidate”, noting that the justice system urgently required an “unimpeachable steward” to restore public confidence in the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

The panel handling the selection process, chaired by Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Mmamoloko Kubayi, on Wednesday began with interviews, which will continue till Thursday.

The DA claimed that the ongoing process to appoint a new NDPP had gone “badly off the rails”.

“The panel set up to advise the President has chosen to interview advocate Menzi Simelane, a man already found unfit for this very office by South Africa’s highest court.

“It is impossible to overlook that history,” said DA spokesperson on Justice and Constitutional Development advocate Glynnis Breytenbach.

She said Simelane’s past appointment as NDPP had been declared unconstitutional as he “lacked the necessary integrity and competence for the job”.

“He actively facilitated State capture in the NPA in the past and will do it again if given the chance. This cannot be allowed to happen,” she said.

The DA said Simelane’s shortlisting to the position was shameful.

“Thirteen years after being removed as head of the NPA following litigation by the DA, Simelane cannot be reinstated,” said Breytenbach.

She pointed out that the Supreme Court of Appeal, and later the Constitutional Court, struck down Simelane’s 2010 appointment, questioning his honesty and integrity.

“…those judgments have never been overturned or softened.

“To make matters worse, he was found guilty of professional misconduct in 2017 for misleading the Ginwala Inquiry, and he now faces a striking-off application from the Johannesburg Bar Council,” she added.

She said it was hard to imagine a more serious cloud over a candidate.

“Yet the panel insists it is only interviewing people who meet the minimum requirements. Under the National Prosecuting Authority Act, ‘fit and proper’ is a minimum legal requirement. The claim by the Panel collapses the moment Simelane’s name appears on the shortlist. 

“If he is treated as qualifying, then the process is irrational. And if the process is irrational, it is unlawful,” she said.

On Sunday, the DA’s attorneys wrote to the panel seeking reasons for Simelane’s inclusion.

Breytenbach claimed that the panel did not acknowledge the letter.

On Tuesday, the DA told President Cyril Ramaphosa that if he appointed anyone from the panel’s recommendations, the DA would approach the court to interdict that appointment.

ActionSA Parliamentary Leader Athol Trollip said considering the adverse findings made against Simelane by the Johannesburg Society of Advocates or the findings of the Ginwala Inquiry, which held that he had misled the Inquiry and provided inaccurate and unreliable testimony, effectively calling his honesty and integrity into question, the party could not reconcile with the fact that Simelane was shortlisted in the first place.

“To be clear, no candidate facing questions over their integrity can be considered fit for the position when what is required is someone beyond reproach,” he said.

On Tuesday, prominent think tank the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) urged the advisory panel to rigorously interrogate the six shortlisted candidates.

CDE executive director Ann Bernstein urged the panel to test whether the candidates would be willing and able to prosecute the powerful, and have the determination, experience and capacity to rebuild the NPA and restore public confidence in the rule of law.