Abstract
The Office of the Public Protector in South Africa is established in terms of Chapter 9 of the Constitution (Act No. 108 of 1996) of the Republic of South Africa. The state institution is accordingly entrusted with strengthening constitutional democracy by investigating any conduct in state affairs or public administration in any sphere of government. Despite its authority and the number of cases it has dealt with since its establishment, the Office of the Public Protector is subjected to intense operational challenges affecting its effectiveness. The core argument of this study is that an under-resourced Office of the Public Protector is unable to fulfil its mandate and is heavily compromised.
This study provides a comprehensive ten-year review of the Office of Public Protector in South Africa, with a specific focus on two investigations: Phala Phala and State Capture. The State Capture and Phala Phala investigations are among the high-profile cases investigated by the Public Protector in the past ten years. The study explores the operational challenges encountered by the Office Public Protector during the investigation of these two cases and aims to shed light on how various challenges affected the effectiveness of the Office.
The study adopted a qualitative research design. The methodology involved a desktop analysis of Public Protector reports, articles, books, and newspapers. Additionally, the study used ‘Institutional theory’ to support the existence of the research phenomenon. The findings of the study indicate that when investigating the State Capture and Phala Phala cases, the Public Protector encountered operational challenges such as political interference, inability to function independently, budget constraints, attacks from members of the ruling party, inadequate operational efficiency, and the weak enforcement of legislation and monitoring procedures. The study, therefore, argues that these operational challenges encountered by the Office of the Public Protector when performing its constitutional duties affect the institution’s effectiveness.
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The study concludes that to improve and ensure the effectiveness of the Office of the Public Protector, the government should assist in addressing the operational challenges encountered by this state institution and ensure that the Office is allocated sufficient financial and human resources to perform its constitutional duties adequately.