Despite the limited funding available to conclude the parliamentary inquiry into suspended public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office, advocate Dali Mpofu has managed to negotiate a better package to represent Mkhwebane.

The section 194 committee which is conducting the inquiry heard on Friday that Mpofu agreed to return to the process, which is scheduled to resume on Monday, on condition he retains his two junior counsel and at increased daily rates.

The inquiry, which began 10 months ago, has faced delays due to budgetary constraints.

Inquiry legal adviser Fatima Ebrahim confirmed to the committee on Friday that a new legal team, Chaane Attorneys, has been appointed by the solicitor-general to represent Mkhwebane after her previous team withdrew from the process.

Parliament had previously heard Mkhwebane had indicated she wanted to retain Mpofu as her counsel.

Ebrahim said the new attorneys’ appointment was conditional on briefing only Mpofu at a rate of R45,000 per day. TimesLIVE understands this is the fee the SC senior counsel has been receiving since the process started.

The public protector’s office (PPSA) had committed to covering “reasonable and budgeted” costs associated with Mkhwebane’s representation including legal fees and disbursements but to a maximum of R4m which was the additional amount made available a month ago.

But Chaane Attorneys later wrote to the PPSA saying after contacting Mpofu, he had indicated he would only accept the brief if his two juniors, Bright Shabalala and Benedict Matlhape, who had been part of the process since it began, were brought back.

After an agreement was reached, the PPSA was advised by Chaane Attorneys Mpofu had submitted a new fee structure increasing his rate from R45,000 to R51,000 per day, Shabalala's from R27,000 to R30,000 and Matlhape's from R18,000 to R21,000 per day.

While the PPSA was concerned this would amount to an additional R12,000 per day, it was agreed to appoint Mpofu based on the proposed new rates.

The PPSA accepted the proposed rates while warning there would be no more funding beyond the R4m, and anything more than that would be for Mkhwebane’s account.

Ebrahim said the office also claimed that despite Mkhwebane having been on record that her legal team was assisting her to reduce fees, counsel fees had now increased from R90,000 to R102,000 per day. According to information at the PPSA’s disposal, these rates were at the upper end of the average of normal rates of counsel in various centres.

MPs adopted a new programme which will see the inquiry resume on Monday and sitting every week until its conclusion at the end of July.

According to the programme, the inquiry comes to an end on July 28 with the adoption of the final report for tabling to the National Assembly.

When the committee resumes next week, it will proceed with Mkhwebane’s oral evidence about her investigations of the CR17 donations and the so-called rogue unit at Sars. She had spent six days on the two subjects before the proceedings were halted due to funds drying up.

Inquiry chair Richard Dyantyi said the committee is aiming to finish its work within 22 days especially since its resources were limited.

“Any further delay of this process or even postponement would not be in the interest of the public, the institution [parliament] and the public protector who is the subject of this inquiry,” he said.

TimesLIVE