In an attempt to postpone the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) meeting scheduled for next week, the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK Party) and parliamentary leader Dr. John Hlophe have made a request to the Johannesburg High Court.
Advocate Dali Mpofu SC, representing the applicants, stated that halting next week’s was not necessarily a preferred relief but was on the cards.
The urgent court hearing comes after the JSC rejected the MK Party’s request to postpone the October sitting, stating that the interviews could take place without Hlophe.
Mpofu requested a postponement while Hlophe’s role within the JSC is clarified.
He pointed out that the JSC will meet on Monday and that parliament is currently in recess.
For the sake of giving this clarity time, he proposed moving the meeting to a new date of two or three months.
Mpofu contended that replacing Hlophe is not a realistic option at this time, but he explained that this period would be useful in determining whether he will remain on the JSC or be replaced.
He emphasised that the process of replacing Hlophe is not clear-cut and may require returning to the National Assembly and possibly going through the nomination process once more.
JSC’s decision was correct
He maintained that Hlophe’s attendance is crucial and that it would be against the law to bar him from the gathering.
The JSC’s legal representative, Ngwako Maenetje, contended that Hlophe’s absence would not invalidate next week’s meeting or any decisions that resulted from it.
“That order is clearly and unambiguously interlocutory, and the effect of the application to lift the appeal is not to suspend that order, and the JSC was correct in taking that decision,” said Maenetje.
“But I don’t want to persuade that the JSC was correct; what I want to show is that it was rational in taking the decision.”
He said Hlophe’s designation in the Judicial Service Commission was not invalidated by the Western Cape High Court’s judgment and order, stressing that he is still a member and is only prohibited from participating.
According to him, the judgment remained legally binding until the relevant legal actions were taken and concluded.
