NDPP race heats up, as Ramaphosa’s panel names six finalists for top job

NDPP race heats up, as Ramaphosa’s panel names six finalists for top job

Zuko Komisa

• The shortlist for the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) includes controversial former office holder Menzi Simelane.
• President Cyril Ramaphosa’s selection panel announced the six candidates who will be interviewed on 10 December to succeed retiring NDPP Shamila Batohi.
• The selection process, which was recently reopened to ensure criteria were met, invites public submissions before the interviews take place.

A six-person shortlist has been announced for the next National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP), succeeding Shamila Batohi upon her retirement in January.

The list, compiled by a selection panel appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa, includes the controversial former NDPP Menzi Simelane, whose previous appointment was invalidated by a court in 2012.

Key Candidates

Other candidates vying for the crucial position to lead the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) include:

• Andrea Johnson, current head of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDEC).
• Hermione Cronje, Johnson’s predecessor at IDEC.
• Nicolette Bell, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in the Western Cape.
• Adrian Mopp, Deputy DPP in the Western Cape.
• Xolisile Khanyile, former DPP in the Free State and former director of the Financial Intelligence Centre.

This is the second time President Ramaphosa has utilised a selection panel to make recommendations for the NDPP, although the Constitution reserves the final appointment as the President’s sole prerogative.