Hlophe’s role in selection slammed

ADVOCACY group Freedom Under Law has described Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe’s participation in the selection of his second in charge as “unethical”.

It said “grave” misconduct charges were still pending against him which could affect the validity of decisions made at the time.

However the NGO, headed by former Constitutional Court justice Johann Kriegler, said it was still looking into the legality of Judge Hlophe’s participation in the interviews for the position of deputy judge president to determine whether legal action was necessary.

“While it has no doubt that Judge Hlophe’s participation in the selection of judges is both undesirable and unethical, as indeed is any exercise of his judicial functions while the grave charge against him remains unresolved, the legality of such participation and its possible effect on the legality of any selection in which he participated are still under consideration,” the organisation said this week.

It was not prepared to give any further comment.

Last week, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) held interviews in Cape Town for various positions on the Bench.

On April 6, Judges Rosheni Allie, Andre le Grange and Patricia Goliath were interviewed to replace outgoing Western Cape Deputy Judge President Jeanette Traverso.

The commission recommended Judge Goliath.

However, after Freedom Under Law discovered Judge Hlophe was present during the interviews, it called on the JSC to give an assurance he would not participate in any further judicial selections as long as the charges against him were outstanding.

The organisation is now considering its position and whether the judge president’s participation in the process may affect the legality of any decisions made.

Francis Antonie, director of the Helen Suzman Foundation, said the judge president’s situation was a symptom of a JSC process which was not as transparent and accountable as it should be

Commenting on behalf of the Judges Matter Coalition, which monitored the JSC’s interview processes, Alison Tilley said she, too, was concerned about the judge president’s presence. It was a difficult situation because the interviews were for the position of deputy judge president.

fatima.schroeder@inl.co.za