President Jacob Zuma’s come home from a summit in Russia ready to talk to the Chief Justice regarding concerns about political interference in the judiciary.
His Education Minister has waded back into the controversy accusing the judiciary of overreaching by making rulings that interfere with the executive and the legislature.
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Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng’s approaching President Jacob Zuma at the behest of 28 senior judges who’ve come under attack from top ANC officials.
This includes Education Minister Blaze Nzimande who says some judgers handpick cases to embarrass and endanger government.
Ombuswoman Thuli Madonsela says the controversy is giving South Africa the appearance of country where the rule of law is breaking down.
ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe says Cabinet members and ANC office bearers should be allowed robustly to debate the workings of the courts.
Zuma has reiterated his commitment to the independence of the judiciary.
However he has yet to explain why visiting Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir was spirited out of the country in defiance of a high court ruling that he be detained pending an application from the International Criminal Court who want him for trial on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.
SA judges concerned about political interference from ANC
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Jean-Jacques Cornish is a journalist and broadcaster who has been involved in the media all his adult life.
Starting as a reporter on his hometown newspaper, he moved briefly to then Rhodesia before returning to South Africa to become a parliamentary correspondent with the South African Press Association. He was sent to London as Sapa’s London editor and also served as special correspondent to the United Nations. He joined the then Argus group in London as political correspondent.
Returning to South Africa after 12 years abroad, he was assistant editor on the Pretoria News for a decade before becoming editor of the Star and SA Times for five years.
Since 1999 he’s been an independent journalist writing and broadcasting – mainly about Africa – for Talk Radio 702 and 567 Cape
Talk, Radio France International, PressTV, Radio Live New Zealand, Business Day, Mail & Guardian, the BBC, Agence France Press,
Business in Africa, Leadership, India Today, the South African Institute for International Affairs and the Institute for Security Studies.
He has hosted current affairs talk shows on Talk Radio 702 and 567 Cape Talk. He appears as an African affairs pundit on SABC Africa and CNBC Africa.
He lectured in contemporary studies to journalism students at the Tshwane University of Technology and the University of Pretoria.
He speaks on African affairs to corporate and other audiences.
He has been officially invited as a journalist to more than 30 countries. He was the winner of the 2007 SADC award for radio journalism.
He’s been a member of the EISA team observing elections in Somaliland, Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Egypt and Tunsiai.
In October 2009 he headed a group of 39 African journalists to the 60th anniversary celebrations of the Peoples’ Republic of China.
In January 2010 he joined a rescue and paramedical team to earthquake struck Haiti.
He is immediate past president of the Alliance Francaise of Pretoria.
Jean-Jacques is a director of Giant Media. The company was given access to Nelson Mandela in his retirement years until 2009.
He is co-producer of the hour-long documentary Mandela at 90 that was broadcast on BBC in January 2009.
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