JSC interviews to get underway despite MK Party's attempts to halt proceedings
54 candidates will take the hot seat before the commission over the next two weeks, with hopes of being appointed to the country’s various courts.
Gauteng High Court Judge Namhla Siwendu was interviewed by the Judicial Service Commission for appointment to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) on 20 May 2024. Picture: @OCJ_RSA/X
JOHANNESBURG - The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) interviews will get underway on Monday despite attempts by the Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party to halt the process.
Fifty-four candidates will take the hot seat before the commission over the next two weeks, with hopes of being appointed to the country’s various courts.
On Saturday, the high court ruled the sittings will not be tainted by impeached judge Hohn Hlophe's absence.
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The party wanted the interviews to be postponed while it appealed a Western Cape High Court ruling that prevented Hlophe from participating in the hearings.
The MK Party’s failed bid in the Johannesburg High Court to halt the JSC interviews from proceeding cleared the way for a two-week stretch of sittings.
The 23-member panel is set to interview candidates for posts in various courts from the Supreme Court, the Land Court, Labour and Labour Appeals courts, and divisions of the high court throughout the land.
While there remains one vacancy in the Constitutional Court, the commission could not proceed to shortlist candidates for this post for this round of interviews due to not enough nominations being made.
On Monday, six judges will make an appearance before the commission, battling it out for three vacancies at the Supreme Court of Appeal.
All but one of the candidates are no strangers to JSC’s hot seat, with Western Cape High Court judge Elizabeth Baartman and KwaZulu-Natal High Court judge Piet Koen returning for a fourth time, with the Eastern Cape High Court’s Nozuko Mjali taking a third go.