STAFF REPORTER|
THE nomination of Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) President Mandisa Maya for the position of Chief Justice could face legal action from various legal experts and civil society organisations.
Certain legal experts and civil society organisations such as the Helen Suzman Foundation, are now saying the questions during the interviews for the position of Chief Justice candidates were not fair, ‘irrational” and “tainted”.
On Saturday evening, advocate Dali Mpofu announced that the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) will recommend Maya for the post.
Maya was shortlisted by President Cyril Ramaphosa for the top judicial position, along with Constitutional Court (ConCourt) Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo and Gauteng Judge President Dunstan Mlambo.
The JSC, however, has been criticised over the line of questioning by some of its members during this week’s deliberations and interviewing processes.
According to the Sunday Times, the Helen Suzman Foundation (HSF) is speaking to other NGOs about legal action to challenge the interview process, which it labelled as “tainted” and “irrational”.
The foundation also described the interviews as biased and said they were talking to their legal team to plan a court action if the interviews are not done afresh.
“Many in South Africa will want to applaud the possible appointment of our first female chief justice. But the recommendation of justice Maya as a result of a tainted, irrational, degraded process is no victory at all,” said HSF executive director Nicole Fritz.
“Far from suggesting that women might take the helm of the judiciary on the basis of merit and their own intrinsic worth, it perversely suggests that they can only do so as a result of a corrupted, debased process.”
On Thursday the Chairperson of the Commission castigated and dropped some of the çritical’ questions that were directed at Justice Dustin Mlambo, on the basis that they were not in line with the interview process.
EFF leader and commissioner Julius Malema and advocate Mpofu said Mlambo has been accused of asking for sexual favours from women who wanted to act as judges in the High Court’s Gauteng Division.
Malema put it Mlambo that there were rumours that Mlambo would seek sexual favours in exchange of appointing female acting judges in his court.
Mlambo vehemently denied the allegations.
Mlambo said when he heard about the allegations he was shocked, and was hoping someone would come forward and say she had been abused by him so he could respond — but nobody did.
“It is unfortunate that people are using people’s names willy-nilly in spreading rumours of this nature,” he said.
Another commissioner, National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, asked Mlambo when he became aware of the rumour and whether there had been any discussion between himself and the now-retired chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng regarding the matter.
The Chair of the Commission said those questions were not in line with the interview processes.
- * Inside Politics
