National director of public prosecutions: A poisoned chalice
Shaun Abrahams has been kicked out of his job as SA’s top prosecutor — but who dares lift the poisoned chalice now?
Less than 12 hours after the Constitutional Court ruled that the appointment of Shaun Abrahams as national director of public prosecutions (NDPP) was invalid, the man widely favoured to replace him made it clear he didn’t want the job. Vusi Pikoli — forced out as NDPP after he pushed for the prosecution of former police chief Jackie Selebi for corruption — tweeted that he would not be returning to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). "I wish to thank all those who have confidence in me. The truth is that I have no inytentions of going back to the NPA. I hope this closes the debate." Last week, Pikoli said he hadn’t been approached to take the job, but declined to say if he would accept such an offer. "I don’t want to answer hypothetical questions because this puts pressure on the person who has the responsibility of appointing," he said. By Monday night, however, Pikoli had clearly decided to take himself out of the running — in the most public way possible. Responses were tell...
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