- President Cyril Ramaphosa sought an extension on the deadline to answer questions related to the Public Protector's Phala Phala investigation.
- Acting Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka rejected his request.
- Ramaphosa's spokesperson said Gcaleka's subpoena threats were unnecessary.
Soon after her subpoena threat, acting Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka has confirmed that President Cyril Ramaphosa has submitted written answers related to the Phala Phala investigation.
On Friday, Public Protector spokesperson Oupa Segalwe said Ramaphosa had submitted the answers, and that they would not comment further about the investigation.
Ramaphosa faced the threat of a subpoena from Gcaleka after he failed to meet the 18 July deadline for submission.
The president's legal team had asked for a further extension, which Gcaleka rejected.
The questions relate to the burglary at his Phala Phala farm in February 2020.
He has been accused of trying to keep the robbery secret, and of possibly abusing state resources to apprehend those who committed the crime.
A criminal case was opened by former State Security Agency director-general Arthur Fraser, in which revelations about the burglary first surfaced.
The Public Protector is probing the ethical questions related to the incident, and Ramaphosa’s answers were expected to shed light on what he knows.
On Friday, Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said Gcaleka’s subpoena threat was unnecessary.
"The threat of the subpoena was unnecessary in our view because the president’s legal team was in communication with the office of the Public Protector.
"There was an attempt for a meeting to explain the reasoning behind the request for an extension, but that meeting did not occur. The responses to Public Protector have been delivered and received by the office of the Public Protector,” Magwenya said.
Mkhwebane impeachment
In another legal debacle facing the president, Magwenya said Ramaphosa believed he should not appear before the Section 194 Committee.
The committee is investigating suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office.
Her legal team and several Members of Parliament believe Ramaphsoa should appear before the committee.
The president suspended Mkhwebane weeks before her inquiry was set to begin.
Magwenya seemed to draw a link between Ramaphosa’s decision to suspend Mkhwebane and her desire for him to appear.
"We will wait until the committee officially advises us whether the president needs to appear before the inquiry. As it stands, we do not see any need for the president to appear.
"The National Assembly kicked off this process, and the president had to fulfil his Constitutional obligation with respect to effecting a suspension. We do not see any need for him to appear, and he did not make allegations against Mkhwebane. All he did was to fulfil his side of the constitutional obligation," Magwenya said.