Johannesburg – Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s preliminary report on the upgrade to President Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla homestead cannot be delayed, because she does not know who to hand it over to, the DA said on Monday.

“While we appreciate… Madonsela’s dilemma in this regard, this report cannot be delayed by the government’s disregard of accountability measures,” DA parliamentary leader Lindiwe Mazibuko said in a statement.

“It is both in the public interest and in the interest of accountability and transparency to ensure that the full and unexpurgated report is made public.”

She said she would write to Madonsela for clarity on whether the full report would be made public.

The SABC reported on Monday that the report was “virtually finalised”.

“We have now asked government to indicate how far they are with deciding where these kinds of reports should go to. We haven’t had an answer yet,” Madonsela told the public broadcaster.

“The one issue, though, that will arise, which we have raised with the presidency… is who do we give the report to.”

‘Unusual challenge’

The presidency was expected to comment on the matter later.

Madonsela said she encountered “unusual challenges” while compiling the report into the security upgrade of President Jacob Zuma’s private homestead in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal.

Mazibuko said she would recommend to Madonsela that the report be tabled before Parliament’s public works portfolio committee.

“I will also query whether I will be receiving a provisional report, as has been the protocol followed in the past,” she said.

“Indeed in other public protector investigations requested by the DA, a provisional copy is sent to the requesting party.”

Last year, the DA said it would ask Madonsela to investigate whether Zuma’s family improperly benefited from the upgrade to his home.

Shortly before that, Zuma told Parliament that government was paying to upgrade the security at his home, but that he had taken out a bond to pay for the rest of the upgrade.

– SAPA