Motata appeals against probe into him

2012-02-27 10:23

Johannesburg - Judge Nkola Motata, who was convicted of drunken driving, has appealed to the courts to stop Justice Minister Jeff Radebe from appointing a judicial conduct tribunal to investigate him, according to a report on Monday.

Motata, who was found guilty of drunken driving in 2009, is attempting to ask the court to find an investigation into his conduct unconstitutional and unlawful, The Sowetan newspaper reported.

In court papers lodged in the North Gauteng High Court on Friday, Motata claimed there was no provision in the Constitution that allowed the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) to decide what constituted misconduct.

In its responding affidavit, the JSC said Motata's application had no merit and it did in fact have the power to investigate gross misconduct charges.

Motata is appealing to get back his job as a high court judge. He was placed on special leave in 2010 pending an appeal against his guilty verdict.

Civil rights group AfriForum has filed papers asking the court to rule that Motata be permanently removed as judge. It claimed his conduct had been brought into question when making racial utterances at the scene of his drunken driving car crash.

- SAPA