BREAKING | ConCourt dismisses Zuma, Mbeki bid to remove Khampepe from TRC inquiry

The Constitutional Court ruled on Monday that retired Justice Sisi Khampepe will continue chairing the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into alleged political interference in apartheid-era Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) cases. However, former presidents Jacob Zuma and Thabo Mbeki were granted permission to appeal the High Court's earlier decision.

The court stated that the recusal application against Khampepe's suitability due to her past role in the NPA and involvement in prior TRC hearings was dismissed. The High Court found it lacked jurisdiction to rule on the matter without prior permission as Khampepe is now retired. Zuma and Mbeki argued this decision was a legal error and the High Court should also have addressed the merits of their recusal claim.

They also claimed Khampepe, as chair of the commission, was not performing judicial functions and thus should not have been subject to the recusal requirement. The court dismissed these arguments, saying the application to review the High Court's earlier ruling was denied, with costs.