uMkhonto weSizwe party to appeal High Court decision and seek postponement of Judicial Service Commission sitting

30 September 2024

uMkhonto Wesizwe Party has resolved to urgently apply for leave to appeal the erroneous and unjustifiable judgment handed down by Honourable Judge Baqwa and others, which interdicts the Leader of the Opposition, Dr. Mandlakayise Hlophe, from attending the upcoming sitting of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) scheduled for Monday, 7 October 2024. We are confident that this judgment will be overturned on appeal and that the primary review application, initiated by the DA and Western sponsored so called civic organisations like Corruption Watch and Freedom Under Law, will ultimately be unsuccessful.

This High Court ruling has precipitated a significant constitutional crisis, as the JSC is now improperly constituted. The delegation from the National Assembly has been reduced to five members, resulting in an imbalance that favours the ruling bloc over the opposition. This violates the constitutional requirement that the opposition must make up at least 50% of the National Assembly's delegation to the JSC. With Parliament currently in recess and only set to reconvene on 7 October 2024, the situation has become critical.

In light of these circumstances, and the improbability of the review application being resolved before next week's JSC sitting, the MK Party has submitted a formal request to the Chief Justice, in her capacity as Chairperson of the JSC, to postpone the sitting until the review application is finalised. We believe that postponement is the only practical and constitutionally sound solution to this crisis. Any decision to proceed with the JSC under its current composition would likely trigger further legal challenges and raise serious concerns about the legitimacy of any appointments made by an improperly constituted body.

We therefore trust that the JSC will act prudently and grant our request for postponement. However, should the JSC fail to do so, the MK Party will have no choice but to pursue legal action to interdict the 7 October sitting. Furthermore, we are prepared to mobilise our supporters, allies, and all freedom-loving South Africans to demonstrate against the proceedings. We remain hopeful that such steps will not be necessary, provided the JSC makes the correct decision to postpone.

Issued by Nhlamulo Ndhlela, Head: Media and Communications, MKP, 30 September 2024