Akani Nkuna
President Cyril Ramaphosa will be among keynote speakers at the farewell dinner in celebration of Chief Justice Raymond Zondo’s contributions to the justice system and the country.
Zondo’s term as the head of the Constitutional Court is set to come to an end at the end of August after more than two years on the seat.
He has served 27 years on the bench.
A Special Ceremonial Sitting of the Constitutional Court which will feature dignitaries from the Executive, Parliament and legal profession will be held in his honour on the 21 August, a day after the farewell dinner which will be hosted at Marriott Hotel, Melrose Arch in Johannesburg.
President’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya, said that “the Chief Justice stands as a champion of the rights of all South Africans and bears responsibility for ensuring equal access to justice.”
Magwenya said the President regarded the role of the Chief Justice highly, to which he has ascribed great responsibility for the persevering of our democracy.
He further characterised Zondo as a figure who was pivotal in advancing the transformation of the judiciary, leading the Labour Appeal Court through significant challenges, and presiding over the State Capture Commission.
Zondo was also instrumental in presiding over the Zondo Commission Inquiry into State Capture which found that the government under former President Jacob Zuma was corrupt.
Zondo was born in Ixopo, KwaZulu-Natal, and matriculated from St Mary’s Seminary before studying law at the University of Zululand, the University of Natal (now the University of KwaZulu-Natal), and the University of South Africa.
He holds a B. Juris degree, an LLB degree, an LLM degree (cum laude) in Labour Law, a LLM degree with specialisation in commercial law, and a LLM degree in Patent Law.
He served his articles of clerkship under Victoria Mxenge before she was assassinated by apartheid agents, and practised as an attorney in Durban for many years before he was appointed as a judge of the labour court in 1997.
In April 1999, Zondo was appointed as a judge of the then Transvaal provincial division of the high court, and then he served as judge-president of the Labour Appeal Court and Labour Court for close to 11 years.
In January 2018, Zondo was appointed as the chairperson of the State Capture Commission, known as the Zondo Commission, and from 1 April 2022, he served as the chief justice of South Africa.
The office of the Chief Justice announced in a statement last week that the judiciary is expected to honour Zondo in a special ceremonial sitting of the Constitutional Court on 21 August, the day he will hand down his last judgement.
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