President Cyril Ramaphosa will use a high-level panel to help him find and appoint the new National Director of Public Prosecutions - a first of its kind in democratic South African history.

Ramaphosa’s spokesperson‚ Khusela Diko‚ has confirmed that the panel will comprise representatives from the General Council of the Bar‚ Auditor-General's office‚ Human Rights Commission‚ National Association of Democratic Lawyers‚ Black Lawyers Association‚ Advocates for Transformation and the Law Society. Veteran cabinet minister Jeff Radebe will also be part of that panel.

The panel will be tasked with coming up with the names of people they believe are suited for the NDPP post. Ramaphosa will himself also submit the names of his own suggested candidates.

These candidates will then be vetted‚ and then interviewed by the panel.

At this point‚ it remains unclear whether this process will be open to the public or not.

The panel will then submit three to five names to Ramaphosa for his consideration.

The mooted formation of this panel marks a first in the appointment process of the NDPP - and comes 59 days after the Constitutional Court gave Ramaphosa 90 days to find a suitable replacement for former NPA boss Shaun Abrahams.

South Africa’s highest court found that Abrahams had been appointed as a consequence of then president Jacob Zuma’s abuse of office - in illegally paying former NPA head Mxolisi Nxasana an illegal R17.2-million “golden handshake” to leave his post.