KZN regional court president suspended five years ago to finally get his day in court

Suspended KwaZulu-Natal regional court president Eric Nzimande, who has been paid more than R6m since he was suspended five years ago, is finally having his day in court.

He will appear in court at the end of this month facing criminal charges of corruption.

And early next year, he will face a disciplinary hearing to answer to 162 charges.

On Monday Nzimande and his legal team met lawyers and officials from the Magistrate’s Commission to pave the way for the hearing.

After this, Justice Finger, commission secretary, said the hearing would be held from January 22 to February 2 next year, at the Point court in Durban.

It would be presided over by retired Supreme Court of Appeal judge Jeremiah Shongwe.

Finger said details of the charges would only be available after a Promotion to Access for Information application.

He said judge Shongwe wanted submissions from the public on whether the hearing should be held in public by the end of November.

He would rule on the issue on the first day of the hearing.

Nzimande has also been served with a summons to appear in a criminal court in Durban later this month.

KZN director of public prosecutions Elaine Harrison has confirmed this but said no further details could be divulged pending his first court appearance.

Sources, however, told TimesLIVE Premium that he was facing five charges of corruption and it was likely the matter would be transferred to the high court for trial.

Responding to questions in parliament in August this year, justice and correctional services minister Ronald Lamola said Nzimande had been paid R6.3m since he was suspended in 2018.

He said after a decision by the Magistrate’s Commission to charge him with misconduct, Nzimande had been served with a charge sheet in September 2018.

He was suspended the next month after ratification by parliament and the national council of provinces.

According to reports at the time, Nzimande denied the allegations.

Among the charges he is expected to face at the disciplinary are that he allegedly victimised and sexually harassed a female acting magistrate, making advances to her, indicating she owed him a debt for giving her the job.

It is alleged he sent her a photo of his genitals.

He is also accused of receiving payments from attorneys, who he then recommended for acting magistrate’s posts.

This is believed to form the basis of the criminal charges.

Lamola, in his reply in parliament, said the delay in the disciplinary matter was largely because the commission had difficulty finding a presiding officer within the ranks of magistrates because of Nzimande’s seniority.

The NPA had also struggled to find a prosecutor to lead evidence.

“The commission then resolved to appoint a retired judge to preside over the disciplinary hearing as the Regulations for Judicial Officers in the Lower Courts, 1994, were amended on 29 October 2021 to also make it possible to appoint a judge for purposes of a misconduct hearing,” Lamola said.

Disciplinary hearings are usually open to the public and the media.

Judges Matter’s Allison Tilly said: “We are disappointed the matter has not been dealt with more expeditiously.

“There are a range of senior judges who have processes pending against them. The lack of efficient resolution of these matters is undermining confidence in the judiciary. The Magistrate’s Commission has historically been able to move on these issues faster, but Nzimande’s case has been very delayed. His seniority seems to be part of the problem,” she said.