Suspended Pretoria High Court Judge Tshifhiwa Maumela has been admitted to hospital due to ill health, leading to the postponement of the Judicial Conduct Tribunal hearings into his conduct.
Chaired by retired Judge Chris Jafta, the hearings started on Monday and were scheduled to proceed until March 22.
Maumela was suspended in June 2023 by President Cyril Ramaphosa, alongside Judge Nomonde Mngqibisa-Thusi, for failure to deliver as many as 21 judgments.
Mngqibisa-Thusi’s hearings were held during December, however, they were held in-camera as the judge’s legal team raised concerns that if the hearings were held in public, it would compromise the testimony of witnesses in her defence who were expected to talk about her personal problems.
As proceedings were due to resume yesterday, Maumela’s legal team informed Judge Jafta that he had been admitted to hospital.
They requested the proceedings be postponed to a date when he would be able to attend in person.
The judge’s health also took centre stage in June 2023, when the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial, which had been plagued by numerous postponements, experienced more delays after he was hospitalised.
Gauteng Deputy Judge President Aubrey Ledwaba reported at the time that Maumela was not available due to ill health.
During the first sitting of the tribunal on Monday, Judge President Dunstan Mlambo told the court how Maumela, through the years, had not done as much heavy lifting as other judges.
Judge Mlambo said he had advised litigants and advocates on a number of occasions to report the delayed judgments to the Judicial Conduct Tribunal, but since many feared victimisation, he had taken the “bold” decision to lodge the complaint himself.
The Judge President told the tribunal hearing that Maumela was only meant to handle the pre-trial for the Meyiwa matter, thereafter a suitable judge was to be appointed, however, he proceeded to hear the evidence.
“He was never meant to hear that matter from day one. He had demonstrated to me as the head of court that he was prone to be incompetent. That’s why I continue to say he’s made himself guilty of gross incompetence,“ Mlambo testified.
Judge Jafta set May 27 as a holding date for the hearings to proceed.
The Star