It’s perhaps a sign of the times that it’s been left to AfriForum to take up the cudgels for decency in public life. The civil rights organisation, often derided in some quarters as a bunch of cave-dwellers, this week approached the Constitutional Court to have the egregious appointment by parliament of John Hlophe to the Judicial Service Commission to be rescinded.
The fact that AfriForum has had to step into the breach is an indication that the so-called new political establishment, who claim to be guardians of our constitutional order, cannot be trusted to defend the reputation of our institutions. But it’s not the first time that AfriForum has come to the rescue.
It’s arguable, for instance, whether the long-running Senzo Meyiwa murder trial would even have happened had it not been for the tenacious Gerrie Nel, head of the organisation’s legal unit, who stepped up and intervened on behalf of the Meyiwa family.
And Nel has been begging the National Prosecuting Authority to let him mount a private prosecution against Julius Malema and his On Point company for tender fraud and corruption in Limpopo. But the NPA officials don’t seem to think it’s their business to bring culprits to book. Or they just seem to know which side their bread is buttered.
One would have thought though that MPs who, after all, have sworn allegiance to the constitution, wouldn’t require any persuasion to protect the honour of parliament. It is their raison d’être after all; otherwise they’ve no business being there.
That Hlophe, who was not even on the original list of MK members submitted to the IEC, does not only find himself in parliament — the body that impeached him — but is now leader of the official opposition, is nothing but scandalous.
And as if that were not enough of an insult, parliament bestowed on him the honour of serving on the Judicial Service Commission, the body that initiated his journey to purgatory. This flawed individual will now be responsible for the interrogation and selection of our judges. It simply beggars belief. Worse, the so-called honourable members are not bothered by the furore. He should be an outcast, a pariah, but instead he’s accorded almost godlike reverence.
Hlophe cannot be blamed for bragging. He has every reason to be cocky — he must be eagerly looking forward to the bodies that put paid to his professional life. He has the last laugh. And parliament is complicit in making a complete mockery of the entire politico-judicial system. They’re Hlophe’s, but more importantly, Jacob Zuma’s, useful idiots. Parliament has simply bent to his will.
Unlike many of her predecessors, Thoko Didiza seemed a breath of fresh air when she was elected speaker. She has a reassuring calmness, which seems suited for the role. But she has badly fluffed her lines in her first major decision. She’s protested that there’s no law barring Hlophe from serving on the JSC. Of course, there isn’t. Drafters of the constitution couldn’t have foreseen the perverse situation of an impeached judge becoming an MP. Her job is to take every reasonable step to protect the integrity of the institution. Those who disagree would have every right to seek redress in court. Instead, she dropped the ball.
Call it prejudice, but politicians from KwaZulu-Natal, whatever their political hue or pedigree, seem drawn to or unable to untangle themselves from Jacob Zuma’s iniquitous web of intrigue. The subservience can be staggering. They’re susceptible to or burdened by pressures that seem beyond mere political calculations. Didiza, of course, has a previous history with Zuma. She was among ministers who resigned after Thabo Mbeki’s defeat by Zuma. After some time in the wilderness, she was accepted back in the fold after she travelled to Nkandla to kiss the ring.
Is it a coincidence therefore that the two critical players in this drama who had the power to stop this madness, Didiza and the ANC chief whip, the well-regarded Mdumiseni Ntuli — who inexplicably sat on his hands and gave Hlophe a free pass — are both from KZN? Can one imagine anybody from any other part of the country being allowed to coast unchallenged to such a prominent position of power? They knew it was wrong, but allowed it to happen.
This flawed individual will now be responsible for the interrogation and selection of our judges. It simply beggars belief.
Hlophe too, if he has any grain in his brain, knows he’s a beneficiary of the sort of chicanery ill-befitting the sanctity of parliament. But hey, humans aren’t in the business of looking a gift horse in the mouth. After he was turfed out of the bench in such a humiliating fashion, he now can’t believe his good fortune. South Africa is a land of endless possibilities. Asked why he had not joined the EFF, which had stood by him when he was down and out, Hlophe said he opted for Zuma’s party because he believed in the Zulu kingdom. He was confirming the obvious: MK is a tribal outfit.
Hlophe is nothing but a hired gun. He doesn’t own what comes out of his mouth. Nobody even knows what the man — the leader of the official opposition! — stands for. He may be out of active politics, but Zuma remains a malign influence on society, corroding its politics and values. He succeeds because people with the power to stop him either decide to play nice or simply let him. He who dares, wins. He’s out to exact vengeance on all his perceived enemies, chief among them the judiciary — which is why the JSC is in his crosshairs. Hlophe, who feels similarly victimised by his erstwhile colleagues, has become a convenient weapon, his battering ram. And Zuma will succeed to contaminate the only area that’s still relatively free of his recidivism — unless somebody is prepared to stand up to him.
The country has fine institutions but they can’t, on their own, save us from this depravity. They require firm and ethical stewardship. The politicians, not for the first time, have failed us. Only the Constitutional Court can save the day; and it must do what’s right for the country.
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