OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Wednesday 7.45pm.
TWO Durban High Court judges on Wednesday said that they made a mistake in co-signing a letter earlier in the year opposing the nomination of Judge Vuka Tshabalala as Natal’s Deputy Judge President.
Speaking at Judicial Services Commission in Pretoria, Judge Brian Galgut and Judge Jan Hugo said they had not forseen the consequences of the letter, which 12 other Durban High Court judges signed.
The letter said, sent to the commission which was considering the nomination of Tshabalala and Judge Willem Booysen for the position of Deputy Natal Judge President at the time, said that Tshabalala would not enjoy the other judges’ support because he lacked the requisite experience.
Galgut on Wednesday said the word “support” was ill-chosen. “The perception that we are racist and that the letter was written with racist motives is the most distressing thing that happened to me in my career,” Galgut said.
Hugo said he regrets a paragraph expressing lack of support for Tshabalala. “We were naive in thinking the letter would not become public, and that it would [not] be bandied about in the press.”
He said the focus of the letter was actually Booysen, not Tshabalala. “We felt we have to put the record straight to show we were not coerced [to support Booysen’s nomination]. Unfortunately we added our views of Judge Tshabalala.”
Galgut and Hugo made the admission at the commission interview for the post. Four judges are nominated this time — Booysen, Tshabalala, Galgut and Jan Hugo.