SABC v DA (393/2015) [2015] ZASCA 156 (8 October 2015) per Navsa & Ponnan JJA (Mpati P, Swain and Dambuza JJA concurring)

The SCA disallowed the appeal with costs and held that the office of the Public Protector, like all Chapter Nine institutions, is a venerable one and the constitutional compact demands that remedial action taken by the Public Protector should not be ignored.

“State institutions are obliged to heed the principles of co-operative governance as prescribed by s 41 of the Constitution. Any affected person or institution aggrieved by a finding, decision or action taken by the Public Protector might, in appropriate circumstances, challenge that by way of a review application.  Absent a review application, however, such person is not entitled to simply ignore the findings, decision or remedial action taken by the Public Protector.  Moreover, an individual or body affected by any finding, decision or remedial action taken by the Public Protector is not entitled to embark on a parallel investigation process to that of the Public Protector, and adopt the position that the outcome of that parallel process trumps the findings, decision or remedial action taken by the Public Protector”.