Nxasana Finally Agrees to Step Down


By Oliver Ngwenya    02-Jun-2015 11:23 UTC+02:00
Nxasana finally agrees to step aside. Image: EWN

Nxasana finally agrees to step aside.
Image: EWN

The embattled head of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Mxolisi Nxasana has agreed to vacate the office of the National Director of Prosecutions with immediate effect following a productive meeting between him and President Zuma. This was revealed by the presidency on Sunday.

According to a statement released by the presidency, Mr Nxasana would leave his position on Monday because when he had met with President Zuma, the two had reached a settlement through which Advocate Nxasana could step down from his controversially held position. The presidency said that, because of the discussions that the president and Mr Nxasana had had, the president would discontinue the holding of an enquiry which he had started which sought to determine his fitness to continue to hold the office of the country’s leading attorney. This follows the emergence, last year, soon after his appointment that Nxasana had failed to divulge to the presidency that he had had some brushes with the law. This emanated mainly from the charge of murder that he had been tried for which was later ruled to have been self defence. After this ‘discovery’ when the president asked him to step down, Nxasana went on to challenge the President’s power to suspend him.

However, things seem to have taken a turn for the better as the President was reported to be in meetings with Nxasana to try and unravel the issue. This culminated in the statement issued by the presidency on Sunday. In their statement, the presidency said, “Pursuant to discussions and consultations held responsibly and in good faith‚ the parties recognised that protracted litigation and the holding of an enquiry are not in the best interest of the NPA‚ Mr Nxasana‚ nor the government at large and‚ consequently‚ the president ceased the holding of such an enquiry.” The statement added that President Zuma accepted and recognized that Mr Nxasana was “professionally competent and possesses the requisite experience and integrity required to hold a senior position”. The statement also revealed that Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Dr Mashau Silas Ramaite had been appointed as acting National Director of Public Prosecutions‚ with effect from Monday.


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