The parliamentary committee that must recommend a candidate to fill the shoes of the retiring Public Protector Selby Baqwa is widely expected to pick either a land claims judge or a University of Transkei law professor.
The committee sits on Friday to complete its selection, which must win the backing of 60% of the assembly before President Thabo Mbeki seals the appointment.
The front-runner is understood to be Justice Bakone Moloto, who was nominated by African National Congress secretary general Kgalema Motlanthe.
Motlanthe also nominated Seth Nthai, a former Limpopo ANC safety and security MEC and advocate who withdrew this week after concluding he could “serve the country better if I am left where I am”.
Nthai’s withdrawal was viewed as a “victory for democracy” by Hendrik Schmidt, a Democratic Party committee member, who said a nomination from the ANC secretary general amounted to a directive to ANC MPs from the party’s leaders.
Media reports also highlighted that Nthai was fingered by the Semenya commission over R5-million that was overspent on a building. Nthai was also accused of using state vehicles to send his dry-cleaning to Johannesburg.
The official opposition is likely to question Moloto’s appointment on similar grounds.
A senior ANC MP on the committee described Moloto this week as “a very good candidate”.
Alexander Gumbi (55), the other front-runner, is a professor who was nominated by the Black Lawyers’ Association, but Moloto is expected to pip him at the post.
Gumbi holds B Juris and LLB degrees from the University of Zululand and is dean of the law faculty at the University of Transkei.
Others the committee members deem strong candidates are Murray Stewart, Ethekwini municipality’s chief legal adviser, and Tinus Schutte, assistant to the public protector.
Judge Moloto (58) has been a judge of the Land Claims Court since December 1995. He was previously a contracts manager in the fuel and water department at Eskom, an executive director of the Black Lawyers’ Association legal education centre and a managing partner in a firm of attorneys.