Minister vs Judges - Back off!
THE judges of the High Courts and Supreme Court of Appeals have rejected the government's moves to force them to publicly declare their financial interests and those of immediate families.
CASE: John Hlophe
RELIANT: Bernard NgoepeSo opposed are the judges to the proposal they have vowed to challenge their merit in the Constitutional Court. The Judge President of the Gauteng High Court Division, Bernard Ngoepe, and SCA judge Robert Nugent yesterday told Parliament that the country's more than 200 sitting and retired judges were against draft regulations.
The regulations have been designed to compel the judicial officers, including magistrates, to publicly disclose their own assets and the business interests of their children and spouses.
The draft regulations have been proposed by Minister of Justice Jeff Radebe and are being processed by a joint ad hoc committee of parliament.
The judges said there was no strong case to argue for the introduction of such strict regulatory measures, saying that in South Africa's contemporary history there has only been one concrete case of a sitting judge found having an undeclared financial interest outside his official position.
This was an indirect reference to the matter relating to Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe, who was found to have been moonlighting for Oasis Asset Management - receiving a R10000-a-month retainer - when he gave the company permission to sue fellow Judge Siraj Desai.
Nugent yesterday told the committee that any attempt to force judges to declare their interests was an "irrational intrusion" into the privacy of their families.
"There is simply no basis on which these regulations, as far as they apply to the family, will have any effect at all other than to be a major invasion of privacy."
Nugent said the judges would challenge the "irrational" draft regulations at the Constitutional Court.
But ANC MP Amos Matila, who is also the co-chairman of the ad hoc committee, accused the judges of rejecting the proposed regulations simply because some members of the judiciary could not explain the wealth they had accumulated while in office.
"A lot of judges, with the small salary that they earn, as they retire they own huge farms. They own a lot of things, you don't know where they got these things from. They can't account."
But Ngoepe said that instructing acting judges, who in most cases are recruited from private practice, to publicly declare their interests would have a dire impact on the justice system by turning them away from the public service.
"We will not be able to have people appointed as acting judges if these regulations stand as they are, we are going to hamper the administration of justice."
Ngoepe's division was relying on at least 66 advocates to act as judges almost every two months.
"We don't appoint acting judges as a favour to them, they get appointed as a favour to us, we need them - they don't need us," he said. "I need them in order to run those courts."
Pointman
I don't see why they should have a problem - they are public servants. This has been done in India where corruption is systemic but the people have had enough and are holding public officials to account now. We will be very naive to think that our judges are uncorruptable.Report Abuse
ApelMankotsana
Given the wave and the manner in which corruption and bribery is fast becoming endemic in our country, it is only normal that every institution of power be strictly monitored to avoid any happening of corrupt activities...with the emrging of young judges who are also moolighting as businessmen, the cahnces of tem been bribed in cases they hear are very high....In that way it would easy to identify if there is any conflict of interests....Report Abuse
candilious
What are you hiding.If your money is clean then what the heck!!!!!!!!!!!!!CORRUPTION,CORRUPTION,CORRUPTION,CORRUPTION,CORRUPTION,CORRUPTION everywhere
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Botaleng
They won't disclose everything. Corruption is everywhere and WILL NEVER GO AWAYReport Abuse
pizozo
Hau!!!What do they have to hide. I mean they busy supporting the lifestyle audit but they dont want that to apply to them. Let them discolse maaan fokof
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Mapholobakay1
This is a GOOD MOVE. Judges and whites in general always cry for transparency...This is transparency. Just look how they will whine now that they are on the receiving end....Report Abuse
MommaC
What difference will it make?Hlope is positively known to have taken money for a ruling but he isn't dis-barred or sanctioned. He got promotion instead.
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RobinH
I agree. They are as human as everyone else and are subject to the same pressures and frailties. They should also be subject to the same degree of scrutiny as anyone else, if not more intense, given the importance of integrity in judicial deliberation. Although MommaC makes a valid point. However, I see this as an unfortunate aberration.Report Abuse
