Thuli Madonsela appointed to UN scientific advisory board

Stellenbosch University’s director of the Centre for Social Justice at the Faculty of Law, Professor Thuli Madonsela, said her appointment to the United Nations (UN) Scientific Advisory Board is an opportunity to infuse ubuntu ethics into science and technology.

Madonsela was appointed by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, to serve on his newly formed board which consists of seven eminent scientists to advise on emerging scientific issues.

Humbled

The former public protector said she was humbled by her appointment.

“Supremely grateful to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for this appointment and opportunity to infuse our ubuntu ethics and justice into the global science and tech policy design space.

“This adds to evidence showing that a new inclusive world, where Africa is an equal partner, is emerging,” Madonsela said.

Social justice

Madonsela said her appointment will assist in complementing and reinforcing efforts at mainstreaming social justice considerations in all policy work

“This provides an opportunity for us at the Centre for Social Justice at Stellenbosch University and partners to share information on our pioneering work on leveraging data science and technology to improve social policy design and social justice impact.”

Flying SA’s flag

Deputy President, Paul Mashatile also congratulated Madonsela on her achievement during the first day of the two-day National Dialogue on Coalition Governments in Cape Town on Friday.

“You have done our country proud, we are confident that you will fly the national flag even higher. Your appointment illustrates the fact that we are a nation that has everything to rise to greater heights,” Mashatile said.

Primary objectives

Guterres said scientific and technological progress can support efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

“They are also giving rise to ethical, legal, and political concerns that require multilateral solutions. My Scientific Advisory Board will strengthen the role of the United Nations as a reliable source of data and evidence and provide advice to me and my senior management team.”

The primary objective of the Scientific Advisory Board is to provide independent insights on trends at the intersection of science, technology, ethics, governance, and sustainable development.

Through their collaborative efforts, the Board and its Network will support United Nations leaders in anticipating, adapting to, and leveraging the latest scientific advancements in their work for people, planet, and prosperity.

With the formation of the Scientific Advisory Board, the United Nations takes a momentous stride towards better-bridging science and policy.

ANC admits it was wrong about former public protector Thuli Madonsela

The African National Congress (ANC) has conceded that it was wrong about the former public protector Thuli Madonsela who stood her ground on the principle of law in most of her cases. Some ANC members vilified Madonsela and called her a spy after her finding against the former President Jacob Zuma on the Nkandla matter.

The ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula says they were wrong to criticise Madonsela regarding some of her findings against party leaders. Mbalula was addressing the media in Johannesburg on Sunday, on a number of issues that were discussed at the party’s recent National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.

“ANC at some point was not happy with the PP Thuli Madonsela. But Thuli’s actions were vindicated by the courts and the ANC was proven to be on the wrong. And the ANC have accepted self-correction that is why in our manifesto we said at some point we veered off. As much as she was criticised but she could stand her ground in terms of the law. Mkhwenbane [Busisiwe Mkhwebane] lost everything.”

“She has just been proven as a delinquent of the law who campaigns and attacks the judges. Where have you seen an advocate like that at the helm of the PP office attacking the judges,” adds Mbalula.

Ex-Public Protector, Thuli Madonsela loses thousands in WhatsApp scam

Former public protector Thuli Madonsela has fallen victim to a WhatsApp scam, losing thousands of rands in the process.

The former public protector took to Twitter to warn others about a WhatsApp identity theft after being scammed by a person who stole her friend’s profile.

She claims that she had lost money, together and her friend after falling into a victim of an alleged scammer who posed as a mutual friend.

Madonsela revealed on Twitter that they became aware of the scam after the scammer became greedy and brazen.

I and a friend lost thousands of rands from a scammer who had hijacked the WhatsApp profile of a mutual friend. He was pretending to be that friend. It was only when the scammer became so greedy and brazen that my son and I figured out the scam and warned other friends. WhatsApp…

— Prof Thuli Madonsela #KindnessBuilds (@ThuliMadonsela3) June 7, 2023

“It was only when the scammer became so greedy and brazen that my son and I figured out the scam and warned other friends. WhatsApp ID theft or hacking is real.

“Worse is people can hack others’ WhatsApp IDs as many of us have been scammed by people masquerading as friends or family,” Madonsela said in a Twitter post.

Meanwhile earlier, Madonsela weighed in when suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane refused to participate in the inquiry chaired by Richard Dyantyi who is fingered in bribery allegations, and called on him to recuse himself from the forum.

Mkhwebane has also asked for the WhatsApp and audio messages allegedly sent to her husband to solicit a bribe to be made public during the inquiry.

If people can be forced to recuse themselves simply because of someone claiming to be dishonestly acting on their behalf with no evidence implicating them, our judges would be in trouble. Even worse is that people can hack others’ WhatsApp IDs as many of us have been scammed by…

— Prof Thuli Madonsela #KindnessBuilds (@ThuliMadonsela3) June 7, 2023

However, Madonsela tweeted that: “If people can be forced to recuse themselves simply because of someone claiming to be dishonestly acting on their behalf with no evidence implicating them, our judges would be in trouble.

“Even worse is that people can hack others’ WhatsApp IDs as many of us have been scammed by people masquerading as friends or family.”

It took hard power to arrest him – Former public protector Thuli Madonsela speaks on Zuma’s arrest

It took hard power to arrest him – Former public protector Thuli Madonsela speaks on Zuma’s arrest.

Hard power. That’s what former public protector Thuli Madonsela says it took to bring Jacob Zuma to heel in the end. And this, she says, is why the Constitutional Court took the hard-line approach it did last week – slapping the ex-president with 15 months in prison for contempt over his refusal to abide by an order to appear before the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture.

The Constitutional Court gave Zuma until midnight on Sunday to hand himself over. In the event he didn’t, it gave the SA Police Service until midnight on Wednesday to get him behind bars.

In the end, not only did Zuma miss his deadline, it wasn’t until the 11th hour that he eventually capitulated.

A minority judgment last week held while Zuma was clearly in contempt, he should have received a suspended sentence on condition he appear before the commission.

But, said Madonsela, what was needed was “hard power”.

“If you look at what it took just to get him to comply with this court order, you’ll realise once again that as sad as this tragedy is, the majority court was right,” Madonsela said yesterday.

“It took hard power to get former president Zuma to do what ordinary people do ordinarily”. Still, she said, “at a human level, it’s a tragedy”.

Zuma’s “final reckoning with the rule of law”, Madonsela said, was “a giant development in the history of South Africa’s democracy”.

Zuma’s incarceration brought to a close a dramatic week of will he, or won’t he?

But he and his legal team still have a few cards to play.

On Tuesday, they moved an urgent application in the KwaZulu-Natal High Court to try and stay Zuma’s detention pending the outcome of another application they have lodged in the Constitutional Court to try and get the ruling against him rescinded. Judgment is expected today.

But pundits aren’t expecting it to go Zuma’s way and Dr Llewelyn Curlewis, who lectures law at the University of Pretoria, yesterday believed the case should be thrown out.

But were the high court to find in his favour, it would be giving the former president a temporary “get-out-of-jail free” card.

He’s also lodged a constitutional challenge to the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA) which could drag on for years, with any ruling likely to find itself the subject of a protracted appeal process.

If he isn’t successful today, Zuma still has a limited number of options available to him.

He could, for example, try appeal the ruling or lodge a fresh “stay” application in the Constitutional Court.

It has been strongly argued that is where he should have gone in the first place because, as the country’s apex court, it’s also the only court that could stay an order it had handed down.

But Curlewis thought by the time he got a hearing for either, the rescission application would likely already have been finalised.

Zuma’s refrain this week has been that he is being detained without trial, but experts have dismissed this claim as having no basis in law and Madonsela yesterday agreed.

“He said he’s the first to be sent to jail for civil proceedings – that’s not true. He also says the first to go to jail without a ‘normal’ trial – that’s also not true,” said Madonsela. –

Thuli Madonsela on Zuma judgment: ‘People will think twice before they insult the judiciary’

Former public protector Thuli Madonsela has welcomed the Constitutional Court’s judgment on former president Jacob Zuma’s contempt of court, saying people will think twice before disrespecting the judiciary.

Zuma was found guilty after he failed to comply with an order to appear before the state capture inquiry. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison and was given five days to hand himself over to the police. The ruling cannot be appealed.

Speaking on Newzroom Afrika, Madonsela said she doubted she would have arrived at the same decision as the court, but the judgment was a reasonable decision.

“It is a rational decision by the Constitutional Court and, in the circumstances, it sends a message across,” said Madonsela.

She said the judgment would be a deterrent for people who continue to insult the judiciary.

“People will think twice before they insult the judiciary. It’s really not whether we like the judges or not, we have a right not to like them, but we have no right to undermine the rule of law. The rule of law and justice are what holds society together,” said Madonsela.

Madonsela was appointed as public protector by Zuma in 2009, and her “state of capture” report in 2016 led to the establishment of the inquiry in 2018.

Speaking out about Zuma’s attitude towards the inquiry earlier this year, Madonsela said Zuma’s public stance to defy the Constitutional Court was a first of its kind from any SA president, current or former, under a new constitution.

She said no excuse could be acceptable for defying the law and that Zuma was not above it.

“There are many people who are not happy with being dragged to court, but because no-one is above the law everyone goes through the courts and trusts that if one court gets it wrong, the next one will fix it,” said Madonsela at the time.

Thuli Madonsela Condemn Behaviour Of Jacob Zuma

Thuli Madonsela has condemned the behaviour of former president Jacob Zuma in her recent interview.

Zuma has publicly defied a Constitutional Court order compelling him to appear before the Zondo Commission. In a recent interview, Thuli Madonsela expressed that Zuma is not above the law.She said Zuma’s stance was a first of its kind from any South African president under a new constitution.

About to go on ⁦@Newzroom405⁩ in a moment pic.twitter.com/mmDBut4bwr

— Prof Thuli Madonsela (@ThuliMadonsela3) February 7, 2021