Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo Calls Lindiwe Sisulu to Order Over Judiciary Comments
- Minister of Tourism Lindiwe Sisulu has come under fire from various quarters for the "rash" comments she made in a recent opinion piece
- Raymond Zondo, the Acting Chief Justice, cut a displeased figure at a press briefing on Wednesday as he responded to the remarks
- Zondo, who maintained the article encompassed senseless accusations, urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to act against Sisulu
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JOHANNESBURG - Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu is catching strays from on high as Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo composed a measured yet scathing response to the recent comments she made about judges and the Constitution.
Zondo is calling for swift action to be taken against the former Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation for trashing the judiciary. In a press briefing on Wednesday, the former chairperson of the Zondo Commission insisted that Sisulu had hurled baseless insults at the entire Constitution.
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In an opinion piece published on IOL last week, Sisulu rubbished the moral standing of the country's judges, especially black judges, and questioned whether the Constitution had adequately dealt with issues brought about by apartheid.
Among a host of snide remarks, Sisulu noted that black judges were "enslaved mentally and have settled with the perception and mindset of the colonialists who dispossessed their ancestors."
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Ramaphosa urged to take action
TimesLIVE reported that in his response, Zondo voiced that the article was filled with senseless accusations that not only insulted the justices of the Constitutional Court, judges of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) and those in the high courts, but all African judges.
He highlighted that inaction by President Cyril Ramaphosa against Sisulu would amount to disappointment, adding that the judiciary cannot instruct the country's first citizen on what to do amid a situation like the one currently in the spotlight, according to eNCA.
Zondo added that the judiciary does not maintain that it could not be criticised. Instead, the Acting Chief Justice said Sisulu's article could not be construed as criticism due to its tone and the assertions it carries.
"It's imperative that we draw the line on conduct that is acceptable and behaviour to the contrary. Criticism should have a proper basis. We've been insulted for nothing other than doing our job," said Zondo.
State Capture: 'No action until full report is received'
Elsewhere, Briefly News reported that Ramaphosa announced on Tuesday last week that the government will not take any action on the findings of the Zondo Commission until the full three-part State Capture Inquiry report is released.
TimesLIVE reported that the first part was officially made public after more than 870-pages of it was published on the Presidency's website shortly before 7 pm the same day.
Briefly News reported earlier that Zondo submitted the first of three parts of the report during the handover ceremony. Ramaphosa did not mince his words when citing that the government will have a clearer outlook on its action plan once the handover process is concluded.
Source: Briefly News
