Lesotho - Aspiring judges exposed

(MENAFN- The Post)

MASERU – SKELETONS tumbled out of closets during interviews for aspiring High Court judges this week.
Some candidates faced allegations of dishonesty, defeating the ends of justice and laziness.
Others were quizzed over their love for the bottle while others had to explain why they were too lenient on people convicted of serious crimes like rape and robbery.

Chief Justice Sakoane Sakoane was meticulous in his quest for the truth as he methodically grilled the candidates.
Chief Magistrate Manyathela Kolobe had a tough time explaining some of the shenanigans unearthed during his background check.
Chief Magistrate Kolobe was asked about allegations that he imported a car without paying tax and sold it to a Mosotho man for M25 000 without properly registering it.

When the buyer wanted to register the car the magistrate allegedly kept making excuses until he sued him.
The magistrate's court ruled in the buyer's favour and when Chief Magistrate Kolobe sought rescission, which the magistrate's court granted, the man appealed to the High Court where Justice Semapo Peete confirmed the initial judgement.

To make matters worse, the court found that Chief Magistrate Kolobe had committed a criminal offence by avoiding paying taxes to the Lesotho Revenue Authority (LRA).
Chief Justice Sakoane also found that Chief Magistrate Kolobe resisted when the court tried to confiscate the car after the man who had bought it obtained a court order.
Chief Magistrate Kolobe, in front of the panel of interviewers, confirmed that he refused to hand over the vehicle to the court officials.

“Doesn't that record bring the judiciary into disrepute?” the Chief Justice asked, to which Chief Magistrate Kolobe conceded.
Chief Magistrate Kolobe was also found to have been too lenient on criminals.
For example, he sentenced a man to three years in jail for raping a minor and one year for robbery. The sentences ran concurrently.
He failed to explain why he was so lenient.

He said there were extenuating circumstances that the convict was a double orphan, a first offender and would not repeat the same crime again.
“You are more sympathetic to a child rapist,” Chief Justice Sakoane told him.
Magistrates 'Makampong Mokhoro, another candidate, also had a torrid session.
Chief Justice Sakoane found that she was not doing her job properly.
When asked about some reserved judgments, Chief Magistrate Mokhoro said she only had two reserved civil judgments.

She was again asked if she remembered what the cases were about.
“The other one is the Standard Bank (case) where they were suing someone who said he paid already and does not owe them,” Chief Magistrate Mokhoro said.
She added that the other case is of a man cutting someone's trees.
Chief Justice Sakoane also asked her about the criminal case in Berea which Chief Magistrate Mokhoro claimed is partly heard.

“It is a trafficking in-person case and we were on our second witness,” she answered.
“I have six civil cases in Leribe and two of them have problems, counsels cannot find their clients,” she said.
Chief Justice Sakoane asked her about the cases she heard in 2021.
She said she has completed two criminal cases and three civil cases in Leribe, two in Butha-Buthe and two in Berea in the last year.

Chief Justice Sakoane criticized her for not doing enough work in the past year as she heard only four cases but Chief Magistrate Mokhoro claimed she had three cases in Leribe, two in Butha-Buthe, and two in Berea.
Asked why she only heard a few criminal cases yet there are criminal matters which were not heard, she said she was never idling while at work as she is always busy.

“Criminal cases are a priority to help the nation combat crime,” Justice Sakoane told her.
She was also found to have sat on a case for eight years without a judgement.
Her reason was that the lawyers were not coming to court.
Another candidate, Tšeliso Bale was asked if he had a drinking problem.“To me, it is really far-fetched,” he said.
When asked if he drinks at bars or restaurants, Bale said he only drinks at home or at family functions.

He later admitted that he used to drink at the bars and restaurants but said he stopped doing that a year ago”.
Justice Sakoane asked Itumeleng Ralebese Letsika, another candidate, if she is aware of reports from prosecutors that she doesn't deliver well-researched judgments and is also a gossiper.
She said there has never been any complaint of gossip and Sakoane told her that gossip cannot have a formal complaint.
She said it is not true that she delivers poorly researched judgements.

MENAFN23022022000229011070ID1103747993

Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.