 |
| ©GCIS |
Justice Sisi Khampepe has deferred judgment on an application seeking the recusal of advocate Thulani Makhubela, a commissioner in the Usindiso inquiry investigating the cause of the Johannesburg fire that killed 77 people. Makhubela was accused of making xenophobic remarks on his X (formerly Twitter) profile, and the recusal application was endorsed by parties at the inquiry, including the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (Seri), survivors of the fire, and the Inner City Federation (ICF).
Jason Brickhill, the director of litigation at Seri and the legal representative of Seri and the ICF, said Makhubela should be recused due to an apprehension of bias. Brickhill said the apprehension was based on the evidence presented by Seri, the ICF, and former residents of the building. Makhubela has repeatedly and frequently tweeted messages in support of Operation Dudula and Put South Africans First groups, with almost all his tweets relating to foreign nationals.
The commission's mandate relates to the rights of the residents of the Johannesburg inner-city, which includes foreign nationals. Residents and victims of the fire have supported the application recusal of Commissioner Makhubela due to genuine concern and reasonable apprehension of bias on the grounds of his tweets and statements relating to Operation Dudula and #Put South Africans First. The fire victims also feel Makhubela might be a member of Operation Dudula, with a suspicion that they might have even started the fire that gutted the Usindiso building.
Makhubela, attending the hearing, questioned the irregularity of informing the chairperson privately and questioned the irregularity of informing the chairperson to the exclusion of everyone else. He was appointed to assist Justice Khampepe and is part of the three-member legal team investigating the fire's causes. Advocate Ishmael Semenya commented on the unopposed recusal, saying that there is no controversy on the facts and that Makhubela has been alive to the application but elected not to contest the correctness of that.
In conclusion, if the facts are accepted and the law as by the highest court of the land is applied, Makhubela must be recused.
