South Africa could soon have its first woman Chief Justice: here’s who she is

OMPHEMETSE SIBANDA|

MANDISA Maya, Judge President of South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal, was recently recommended by the country’s Judicial Services Commission to become the next Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court.

The position became vacant after the 12-year term of Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng ended in October 2021.

It is now up to President Cyril Ramaphosa to decide if she actually ascends to the highest judicial position in the country. This follows what many consider to have been a shambolic selection process.

If appointed, she’ll be the first woman Chief Justice since South Africa became a constitutional democracy following the end of apartheid in 1994.

Here are some interesting facts you need to know about Judge Maya.

The early years

Mandisa Muriel Lindelwa Maya was born in Tsolo, Eastern Cape, one of the country’s poorest areas, which borders the Indian Ocean, in 1964. She has five younger siblings, three children and is married to Dabulamanzi Mlokoti.