Parliament said it would take Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s findings into Absa bank’s misappropriation of public funds, on review.

Mkhwebane recommended that Absa pay over a billion rand in interest from a loan to its predecessor, Bankorp, for an apartheid-era bailout.

In a statement issed on Thursday, Parliament specified that the “allegations of maladministration, corruption, misappropriation of public funds and failure by the South African government to implement the CIEX report and to recover public funds from Absa Bank will be further probed.”

The Public Protector was accused of overreach when she said Parliament should amend the Constitution to change the mandate of the South African Reserve Bank (Sarb).

She wanted Sarb to stop inflation-targeting, which the central bank to protect the value of the rand.

Instead, she said Sarb’s primary aim should be to promote balanced and sustainable economic growth, while ensuring that the socio-economic well-being of citizens was protected.

Absa, Sarb, political parties and the Finance Minister all condemned her remedial action, arguing that the Reserve Bank must remain independent.

Parliament said the Public Protector’s remedial action essentially instructed a committee “to start a legislative process, prescribes to the institution on the policy that will inform the bill, the wording of the amendment of the Constitution’s section 224 and directs what constitutional provisions must inform the legislative process of the bill.”

This, it said, “usurps the powers of the institution under the Constitution. Section 57 of the Constitution empowers the Assembly to control its internal arrangements, proceedings and procedures.”