- The Constitutional Court dismissed Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane's application for leave to appeal the ruling that her powers of subpoena do not extend to taxpayers' information.
- The apex court did, however, set aside the personal cost order against Mkhwebane.
- Mkhwebane wanted to access corruption-accused former president Jacob Zuma's tax information.
Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane suffered another loss in court when the Constitutional Court dismissed her direct application for leave to appeal a High Court ruling on her matter to obtain corruption-accused former president Jacob Zuma's tax information.
However, she also scored a victory when the personal cost order against her was set aside by the Constitutional Court, and the court expressed concern about the tendency to seek personal cost orders against her.
In a unanimous decision, Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga said: "This court takes the view that an appeal does not engage this court's jurisdiction."
The court did, however, grant Mkhwebane's application for leave to appeal the personal costs handed down against her in the matter. Madlanga said the High Court's ruling that she acted in bad faith "beggars belief". He said there was no basis for the personal cost order and it should be set aside.
Mkhwebane and the South African Revenue Service (SARS) have been engaged in a court battle over Zuma's tax records after Mkhwebane subpoenaed the records in October 2018. In November, SARS launched an urgent court bid to block Mkhwebane's access to Zuma's tax information.
Mkhwebane argued she needed access to Zuma's tax information as part of an investigation. Her probe follows a 2017 request from then-DA leader Mmusi Maimane to look into Zuma's tax affairs after investigative journalist Jacques Pauw, in his book The President's Keepers, stated that the former president had received a R1 million salary from a private security company run by his associate Roy Moodley after he became president.
In March, Judge Peter Mabuse ruled that officials at the tax agency are permitted to withhold taxpayer information. Also, the Public Protector's subpoena powers do not extend to taxpayer information. According to the personal cost order granted against Mkhwebane, she was ordered to pay 15% of SARS' legal fees.
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