Mbenenge tells tribunal that his relationship with Mengo was mutually flirtatious
The judge president revealed to the tribunal that Mengo actually sent him photos of herself, prompting his compliments, but later deleted them.
Eastern Cape Judge President Selby Mbenenge took to the witness stand to detail his relationship with his subordinate, Andiswa Mengo on 7 July 2025. Picture: Jacques Nelles/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - The head of the Eastern Cape Division of the High Court, Selby Mbenenge, has told the Judicial Conduct Tribunal investigating allegations of sexual harassment against him that his relationship with High Court secretary Andiswa Mengo was a mutually flirtatious one.
The judge president revealed to the tribunal that Mengo actually sent him photos of herself, prompting his compliments, but later deleted them.
Mbenenge took his turn in the hot seat before the fact-finding body sitting in Sandton, Johannesburg, as it continues its misconduct probe against him.
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He said he did not feel like Mengo was uncomfortable with their conversations and said there had never been an explicit rejection of his advances.
Mengo accuses the top judge of making unwanted sexual advances towards her between 2021 and 2022.
However, Mbenenge said he understood her use of emojis on the social media platform, WhatsApp, to be flirty.
“I am a Xhosa man, and I know of something like, on the part of a lady, ukumutsa, is when you show interest in a lady, and in the Xhosa setup, they don't look you in the eye, bayamutsa, they look down. When somebody covers their face like this, for me, a Xhosa man, that is sufficiently flirtatious. These were flirtatious interactions.”