Following its objection to the shortlisting of Johannesburg Society of Advocates' advocate Menzi Simelane as a National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) candidate, ActionSA further objected to the candidacy of National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Investigating Directorate (ID) advocate Andrea Johnson, claiming she is unfit for the position of NDPP.

The advisory panel handling the selection process, chaired by Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Mmamoloko Kubayi, has been holding interviews since Wednesday.

Last month, the panel announced that it had shortlisted six candidates for the position.

They include former NPA ID head advocate Hermione Cronje, who is now a freelance international anti-corruption and asset recovery specialist; NPA Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions advocate Nicolette Astraid Bell; Johnson; Global Coalition to Fight Financial Crime chairperson advocate Xolisile Jennifer Khanyile; NPA Western Cape Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions advocate Adrian Carl Mopp; and Simelane.

President Cyril Ramaphosa established the panel, ahead of the end of advocate Shamila Batohi’s term of office, in January 2026.

ActionSA Parliamentary leader Athol Trollip said the country’s justice system needed an “unimpeachable steward” to restore public trust in the institution.

“Adv. Johnson’s poor performance before the Ad-hoc Committee, coupled with comments she made in a meeting effectively advising prosecutors to ‘fake it until you make it’ when handling serious cases, raises serious concerns about her suitability for this critical role,” he said.

Johnson was interviewed on Wednesday, and Trollip said there were questions about whether she could turn around the NPA.

He noted that most public comments submitted on the suitability of the candidates showed that they objected to Johnson’s candidacy, which ActionSA believed demonstrated a lack of public confidence in her.

“…marking a clear signal that if we are to reverse the shocking decline of the NPA, she simply cannot serve as head of our prosecuting authority,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance (DA) has been vocal about Simelane’s shortlisting, expressing disappointment with the panel.

“The panel set up to advise the President has chosen to interview advocate Menzi Simelane, a man already found unfit for this very office by South Africa’s highest court,” said DA spokesperson on Justice and Constitutional Development advocate Glynnis Breytenbach.

She said Simelane’s past appointment as NDPP had been declared unconstitutional as he “lacked the necessary integrity and competence for the job”.

“He actively facilitated State capture in the NPA in the past and will do it again if given the chance. This cannot be allowed to happen,” she said.

The DA said Simelane’s shortlisting for the position was shameful.

On Tuesday, the DA told Ramaphosa that if he appointed anyone following the panel’s recommendations, the DA would approach the court to interdict that appointment.