Advocate Penelope Magona-Dano battles to field tough questions in JSC interview
Advocate Penelope Magona-Dano is one of nine candidates vying for appointment to the Western Cape High Court.
Interviews for four vacancies in the Western Cape Division of the High Court continued on Tuesday, 15 October 2024. Pictured is Advocate Penelope Magona-Dano. Picture: X/OCJ_RSA
JOHANNESBURG - An aspirant judge has been asked to give reasons why she should be appointed to the bench while battling to field tough questions from the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
Advocate Penelope Magona-Dano is one of nine candidates vying for appointment to the Western Cape High Court.
The JSC is looking to fill four judge vacancies in that court.
The quality of Magona-Dano’s judgments and the fact that she has not acted as a judge since her last JSC interview in 2021 have not counted in her favour during her interview held on Tuesday.
Magona-Dano told Chief Justice Mandisa Maya that she could not afford to attend the Advanced Aspirant Judges Training in 2023, something acting Judge President Patricia Goliath said worked against her.
“You were a victim of the austerity measures Ms Magona. SAJEI [South African Judicial Education Institute] had every intention of paying the candidates of that programme a stipend and as I understand it, there just wasn’t enough money."
The advocate also had a tough time fielding some of the technical questions posed by commissioners including advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi.
“So far it's only negative things that are emerging from your CV - things that are saying don’t recommend this candidate but I am looking for the positive things. What is this thing that you can leave us with that we can recommend to you because so far the picture is not looking great?”
Magona-Dano said the fact that she was open to further training and that her appointment would be a gateway for black women to be considered in her favour.