Anti-graft crusader defies critics to take on the mighty in South Africa

Thuli Madonsela during an interview with The Standard on Saturday at a Nairobi hotel. [PHOTO: FIDELIS KABUNYI/ STANDARD]

When South Africa Public Protector Thuli Madonsela announced that President Jacob Zuma, had unduly benefited from R246million (Sh2.4 billion) of public funds to upgrade his Nkandla estate, she instantly became a ‘marked’ woman.

The ‘unfavourable findings’, in a report titled ‘secure in comfort’ including proposals that Zuma refund monies not specifically used for security upgrades in the renovations, attracted criticism from ruling African National Congress (ANC)- a party she had diligently served in the Apartheid era.

Disparaging remarks were made about her and there were even reports in sections of the media that she was to be ‘arrested and charged with fraud’.

In a continent where criticism of Heads of State is often not tolerated, Ms Madonsela was castigated for ‘overstepping her boundaries’, and at some point branded a 'traitor' working for the Central Intelligence Agency. But Madonsela stood her ground because she believed she was just doing her job.

The South Africa Public Protector’s office is similar to Kenya’s Ombudsman, also known as the Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ). The commission is mandated to address maladministration and promote good governance in the public sector, by investigating abuse of power, injustice, unlawful, oppressive, or unresponsive official conduct.

“The venom and arsenal hurled at me was unimaginable. Never in my life had I witnessed so much hate directed towards me,” she says.

Thanks to supportive colleagues, family, friends, and strong spiritual grounding, she rode the storm and moved to the next challenge. The 52-year-old, speaks softly, sometimes almost inaudibly when addressing a gathering, but beneath the soft veneer lies a tougher than nails personality whose stance on corruption has seen her take on some of South Africa’s prominent persons.

Although she has handled hundreds of investigations since her appointment in 2009, some of the high profile cases include that of former police chief Bheki Cele, who was fired over corruption allegations.

Not afraid to even take on those within Zuma’s Cabinet, investigations by her office in 2011, led to the sacking of Governance Minister Sicelo Shiceka and Public Works Minister Gwen Mahlangu-Nkabinde over corruption.

In later years, her office would be involved in investigating alleged misuse of funds during former President Nelson Mandela’s burial, a case that also touched on senior government officials from the Eastern Cape Province. While high profile cases have often attracted media attention, Madonsela maintains that every complaint that comes to her office gets equal attention. For her spirited fight against corruption, accolades have come calling.

She has featured on 'Time' magazine’s 2014 list of 100 most influential people in the world, been awarded Transparency International ‘s 2014 Integrity Award, and crowned South Africa person of the year, ‘for her unwavering commitment to truth’. Yet Madonsela remains modest in the face of these achievements.

“There is really nothing special about me. I am just like any other lawyer and am thankful for the great team I work with who have taken their job as a calling. I have also got support from Government, among leaders that want to see effective service delivery,” says the mother of two children aged 26 and 23.

Born in Soweto in 1962, Madonsela, an alumni of the Universities of Swaziland and Witwatersrand, entered the legal profession in 1984 where she worked as an education officer at the Paper Printing Wood and Allied Workers Union.

Besides teaching at Witwatersrand University, Madonsela has served in various capacities in government and the civil society, holding positions at the Justice department, South Africa’s Law Reform Commission, Office of the Status of Women in the presidency, and as presiding officer at the Independent Electoral Commission.

An article in 'Time' reminisces her childhood, giving a glimpse into how she gleaned arbitration skills from an early age. Says Madonsela, “Even though my mother was officially a domestic worker, she was well known in Soweto as an unofficial social worker. She was always there to soothe the waters between fighting husbands and wives and troublesome neighbours.” She also credits her father, an informal trader for instilling in her values of hard work and ‘being of value to society’.

Madonsela talks of coming from a large family- ten siblings- some have passed away- and being an aunt to many nieces and nephews. Having lost the father of her children about 15 years ago, she had to learn to juggle the roles of holding down a demanding career and raising her two children as a single mother. A lover of classical music, ‘old rock’ and gospel music, Madonsela confesses to reading ‘virtually everything’ she can lay her hands on, but has a greater affinity for books on spiritual growth and leadership, governance and constitutionalism.

She holds a pragmatic view to her turning down of an MP position offered by the ANC in South Africa’s first post Apartheid parliament in 1994, and similar overtures allegedly made during the country’s 2014 General Election. Not new to ‘giving up opportunities many would otherwise ‘die for’- she gave up a Harvard University scholarship in order to help draft the Constitution. The Public Protector believes she is serving her life’s purpose in the path she chose to follow.

“I wouldn’t want to get into politics because I believe I am serving my purpose where I am by ensuring justice and fairness for all,” says Madonsela, who would like to return to legal practice and academia when her term expires in 2016.

She talks candidly about the role of women in governance, but is careful not to pass any judgements on local politics as this would be ‘going against the tenets of good diplomatic practice’. She instead says even though South Africa has performed better than many countries on the continent, it is yet to achieve its goal of 50:50 gender representation in public service.

On the push by African states to establish the continent’s version of The International Criminal Court (ICC), Madonsela, who maintains that pulling out of the ICC isn’t the solution, had this to say. “As a lawyer I see no fault in the conduct of the ICC because its processes are fairly open. I also have nothing against Africa having its own court but I don’t think this should replace a global action forum like the ICC,” she says.

She argues its important for leaders to know there are mechanisms of being held accountable for their actions beyond structures or systems they can control, adding that there is a need for all countries to subject themselves to the ICC’s processes. Some countries like the US ,Israel, China and India are not participants in the court which Madonsela says holds some hope for victims of gross human rights violations.

She, cites her stint as Public Protector as also having been the source of the lowest and highest moments in her life, adding that the office of the Ombudsman in the African context is often polarising given that it deals with matters of misconduct.

“It gives me pleasure to see a highly placed individual in society agreeing to meet and talk with a peasant to amicably resolve an issue where the latter has been aggrieved. On the other hand, however, there can be rather ugly reactions from those found guilty of misconduct,” she says.