Court dismisses application to remove Khampepe as chair of TRC cases inquiry

The High Court in Johannesburg has dismissed an application to remove Justice Sisi Khampepe as chairperson of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC) cases inquiry.

Former presidents Jacob Zuma and Thabo Mbeki petitioned the court to review and set aside Khampepe’s decision to stay in the role.

Zuma and Mbeki argued that Khampepe was biased due to her roles in the original TRC and as Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions between 1988 and 1999.

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Zuma and Mbeki have suffered a blow after the court not only dismissed their review application but slapped them with costs.

Their complaint against Khampepe was that she may be biased in evaluating the information presented to her as the chairperson of the TRC cases.

In their affidavit, lawyers for Zuma attacked Khampepe’s integrity, accusing her of criminal behaviour based on alleged emails exchanged between her and evidence leaders.

They sought to have her pay the costs of the application in her personal capacity, arguing that she was not protected by Section 47 of the apex court’s act that cushions judges against such claims.

The court found that Khampepe, although retired, is still active and, therefore, protected under the Constitution.

The court described this argument as a nullity, saying it has no jurisdiction to decide on this issue.