ConCourt rules against Zuma and Mbeki in bid to recuse Judge Khampepe

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On 31 August 2026, the South African Constitutional Court dismissed an application by former presidents Jacob Zuma and Thabo Mbeki to recuse retired judge Sisi Khampepe from chairing a commission of inquiry into the suppression of apartheid-era TRC case investigations. The applicants argued that Khampepe’s previous roles in the TRC Amnesty Committee and the National Prosecuting Authority created a reasonable perception of bias, a claim the inquiry chair rejected due to a temporal disconnect between those roles and the inquiry's mandate. While the Constitutional Court delivered three separate judgments on the matter, the ultimate legal outcome resulted in the rejection of the review application. This ruling validates the inquiry's current leadership despite an admission from President Cyril Ramaphosa that he would not have appointed Khampepe had he been aware of her professional history.

Consequences

With the review application dismissed, the commission of inquiry will proceed under Judge Khampepe's leadership to investigate the alleged suppression of TRC-related cases since 2003. The conclusion of these legal challenges allows the commission to resume its work without the disruption of a leadership change.

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