AfriForum takes legal steps to remove Hlophe from JSC
21 July 2024
The civil rights organisation AfriForum has started legal proceedings to challenge the National Assembly’s (NA) recent appointment of former judge-president Dr John Hlophe as a member of the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) in the Constitutional Court.
AfriForum requests the Constitutional Court in its court application to declare that Hlophe’s appointment is irrational, unlawful and in conflict with the NA’s constitutional duty.
AfriForum has already served its court documents electronically on the Speaker of Parliament, Hlophe and the MK party. An application requesting, among other things, direct access to the Constitutional Court will be issued in this court in the coming week.
According to Kallie Kriel, CEO of AfriForum, it is unthinkable that aspiring judges’ ethics, integrity and suitability to serve as a judge should henceforth be assessed by Hlophe as a member of the JSC. This while Hlophe himself was earlier found unfit to serve as a judge by the JSC due to his dishonesty and gross misconduct.