South Africa: Justice Committee Welcomes Public Protector South Africa’s (PPSA) Annual Report, Urges Stronger Whistle-Blower Protection

The Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development today welcomed the Public Protector South Africa’s (PPSA) achievement of 100% of its performance targets across all programmes in the 2025/26 financial year, while expressing concern about the protection of whistle-blowers.

The institution secured a clean audit outcome, with no material findings from the Auditor-General of South Africa.

Committee Chairperson Mr Xola Nqola said the committee noted the PPSA’s performance across its administration, investigations and stakeholder-management programmes, describing it as evidence of a commitment to accountable governance and operational efficiency. However, he said the committee remained concerned about the protection of whistle-blower information and the application of confidentiality protocols.

During the engagement, committee members raised serious concerns about reports that confidential whistle-blower information had been compromised or disclosed in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). The office recently acknowledged procedural failures in its handling of a case involving a former Durban metro-police officer in KZN, in which the complainant’s details were made public.

Public Protector Adv Kholeka Gcaleka assured the committee that the matter was under investigation following allegations that a senior member of the team had failed to follow the required protocols. She said the PPSA was working with other bodies, including the Hawks, as it normally did when corruption or other wrongdoing was suspected. Committee members stressed that protecting whistle-blowers’ confidentiality and safety is essential to maintaining public trust in the PPSA’s investigations and its constitutional mandate. “The matter is ongoing in terms of consequence management,” she said.

The committee heard that the PPSA finalised 3 170 investigations, achieved 87% compliance with case-turnaround times and reduced the number of matters subject to judicial review. The PPSA said the reduction in judicial reviews indicated improved quality and legal defensibility in its reporting.

The committee also acknowledged the PPSA’s efforts to improve public access through a digital self-service portal and outreach programmes. Access to services has been a longstanding concern, particularly for vulnerable communities who may live far from PPSA offices. The committee also noted that irregular expenditure decreased from R4.5 million in 2024/25 to R843 000 in 2025/26, which the PPSA attributed to the enforcement of consequence management. “Although this is commendable, we want to encourage the office to do even better,” expressed Mr Nqola.

Mr Nqola reiterated concerns about persistent budget cuts, which have left 195 of the 567 approved posts (34%) unfunded and contributed to a 10.5% vacancy rate among funded positions. He said the committee wanted to see the vacancy rate fall by the next annual reporting cycle, particularly among investigators.

The committee reaffirmed its support for continued engagement with Parliament’s Appropriations Committee to address baseline funding gaps and ensure that the PPSA is adequately resourced to protect the public and uphold administrative justice.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa: The Parliament.