Cape Judge President John Hlophe should be asked to take a leave of absence until questions about monthly ”expense” payments made to him by a Cape Town investment company were answered, the Democratic Alliance said on Sunday.
A decision he made granting that company permission to sue a judicial colleague also had to be explained.
”There is an urgent need for clarification around the latest fracas involving Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe,” DA justice spokesperson Sheila Camerer said on Sunday.
This, after the Sunday Times reported that Hlophe, in a signed statement to the newspaper, admitted receiving ”expense” payments — in his capacity as a trustee on a retirement fund — from Oasis Group Holdings, between 2000 and 2005.
”By 2002, he was receiving R10 000 a month for ‘out-of-pocket expenses’.”
The newspaper reported that in 2004, when Hlophe granted Oasis permission to sue High Court Judge Siraj Desai, he was ”still receiving payments from Oasis”.
Oasis was seeking to sue Desai over allegedly defamatory remarks about the company in 2001. It obtained permission to do so from Hlophe in October 2004. Litigants require the permission of a judge president to sue a judge.
Camerer said Hlophe appeared to be issuing contradictory statements about his association with Oasis.
”His first response [last week] … was to deny any involvement. Now, according to today’s Sunday Times newspaper, he has admitted receiving what he called ‘out of pocket expenses’ since 2000, amounting by 2005 to a generous R10 000 a month, which sounds much more like a salary than expenses.”
Hlophe claimed he was granted permission by the late justice minister, Dullah Omar.
”This seems odd in that Mr Omar retired as justice minister at the 1999 election, and was immediately succeeded by Dr Penuell Maduna. No doubt the records of the Ministry of Justice will tell us on which date Judge Hlophe received permission from Mr Omar,” she said.
Under the Judges Remuneration and Condition of Employment Act, judges are not allowed to earn income other than their salaries without the minister’s permission.
Camerer said the whole point of this rule was to ”avoid conflict of interest situations of the kind Hlophe has apparently landed himself in”.
In the past, the DA had sent parliamentary questions to the justice minister about the matter of outside remuneration for judges. New ones would now be posed.
”The apparent lax approach by both judges and the politician in charge of their conduct raises the question whether a code of conduct is needed for judges.
”Until these issues are clarified, it would perhaps be advisable if the Chief Justice [Pius Langa] requested Judge Hlophe to take a leave of absence,” she said.
Attempts to contact both Hlophe and the justice department on Sunday afternoon were not successful.
Meanwhile, the Freedom Front Plus said a thorough investigation into Hlophe’s activities could be delayed no longer.
The party moved a substantive motion in the National Assembly last year, calling for an urgent investigation into some of the judge’s remarks.
”Now there are reports that [Hlophe], contrary to prescribed rules, has been earning another salary — apparently on the books of the Oasis Group to the tune of R10 000 a month.
”If he is found guilty of this, the FF Plus suggests he be redeployed to another profession … ” the FF Plus said. – Sapa