If Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s first week in office is indicative of her future performance in the job, then be prepared for a Public Protector who defines her role not as the protection of the country, but rather the protection of the Zuptas.

Main picture: Busisiwe Mkhwebane

The first hint was something was amiss with Mkhwebane, was when DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach alleged that Mkhwebane has worked as a spy when she was employed as an immigration officer at the South African embassy in China.

Then when Mkhwebane was appointed, one of her first utterances was that Madonsela focused too much on high profile cases. Instead, her focus would be on the myriad of small cases. My interest was immediately piqued. The implication of this volte facie would be that the Public Protector would be mired in thousands of insignificant cases whilst placing the real corruption amounting to billions on the backburner.

If that is not State Capture, what isn’t? Mkhwebane has seen it fit to banish the expression State Capture from the lexicon as if its banishment will make it disappear. Like lipstick on a pig, it will do no such thing. The citizens of South Africa will not be fooled by such sophisticatory.

With Thuli Madonsela barely out of the door, Mkhwebane has alleged besmirched her legacy by pillorying her for accepting foreign donor funding. The fact that the funding was received by the Treasury and then allocated to the various government departments such as the Auditor General was ignored in this salvo. All that will be recalled by Zuma’s lapdog such the MKMV is that foreign funding was involved.

Albeit a minor indicator of the wind direction with the Public Protector’s Office but perhaps more telling, was the decision by Mkhwebane was that the only news channel to be shown at their offices was ANN7, the infamous Gupta channel. Is this in any way indicative of a back-hander being proffered to Mkhwebane like the R600 million offered to the Deputy Minister of Finance, Jonas Mcebisi?  Previously the preferred channel was eNCA.

Now Mkhwebane was exceeded her protagonists’ expectations: The Public Protector will not oppose Zuma’s application to the Courts to have Thuli Madonsela’s report blocked.

In effect, Mkhwebane has provided Zuma with a get-out-of-jail card.

If that is not telling of her allegiances, what is?

Probably next the Hawks in cahoots with the NPA with be charging Thuli for some bogus charge.

Weep, South Africa, weep.