Union federation Cosatu has criticised impeached former public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane for her court application seeking a multimillion-rand gratuity payout from the public protector's office.
Mkhwebane is appearing in the Pretoria high court on Tuesday, fighting for a R10m gratuity after her impeachment. She was removed from office last year for misconduct and incompetence.
Cosatu spokesperson Zanele Sabela said the gratuity is a token of appreciation for individuals who leave office with a clean record, which the union believes Mkhwebane is not entitled to as she was removed from office.
Cosatu is dumbfounded by Mkhwebanes court bid to force her former office to pay her a R10m gratuity though she was removed from office. Cosatu condemns Mkhwebanes attempts to defraud the state of funds she is not entitled to and urges the courts to dismiss her spurious case with costs. The state cannot afford to indulge this attempt at extortion when critical nursing, teaching and police vacancies exist, she said.
For Mkhwebane to seek legal recourse after she unashamedly distorted reports to suit specific outcomes takes a special breed of temerity. She was found by parliament to have been so bad at her job she needed to be relieved of her duties a month before her term expired.
