FILE – Former spy boss Sam Muofhe has turned down the nomination for the position of Inspector-General of Intelligence. Muofhe takes the stand at the state capture commission. 28/11/2018 File photo: Dimpho Maja/ African News Agency (ANA)
Cape Town – Former spy boss Sam Muofhe has turned down the nomination for the position of Inspector-General of Intelligence to become vacant at the end of March next year.
However, Parliament’s oversight committee on intelligence, chaired by senior ANC MP Jerome Maake, is undertaking a process of picking the next inspector-general of Intelligence.
The appointment of the new inspector-general would require a majority of two-thirds of MPs to get the nod.
The remaining candidates would have to be grilled by MPs in the joint standing committee on intelligence before they settle for the suitable person to head the spy watchdog body.
The term of incumbent Setlhomamaru Dintwe is up in March, but MPs have been shortlisting candidates for the top job.
Dintwe has served a full-term since he took over the position in March 2017 and he is one of the contenders for the position.
The joint standing committee had trimmed the list of candidates to 12 before Muofhe withdrew from the race.
MPs will have the next four months to decide on the suitable candidate before sending the name to President Cyril Ramaphosa for consideration.
It has been reported that Muofhe has turned down the nomination for the post as he was one of the candidates announced by the joint standing committee on Friday.
The committee had named Reverend Frank Chikane, Dintwe and Muofhe as among the 12 candidates.
Maake had said the appointment of the new spy watchdog head was in line with the Intelligence Services Oversight Act.
The role of intelligence agencies became a subject of discussion at the Human Rights Commission this week probing the July unrest in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.
Intelligence was accused of security lapses during the unrest.
siyabonga.mkhwanazi@inl.co.za
Political Bureau
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