Mr Speaker, Mr President, Mr Deputy President, Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Chief Justice Ngcobo, Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke, former Chief Justice Pius Langa, President of the Supreme Court of Appeal Justice Mphathi, judges president and other judges present, fellow Members of Parliament, ladies and gentlemen, it is an honour for me to address this Joint Sitting of the two Houses of Parliament since our country transcended apartheid to democratic rule 15 years ago today. It is also an honour to bid farewell to Chief Justice Pius Langa and to welcome Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo as the fifth Chief Justice since the dawn of a democratic South Africa.
It is remarkable that the changing of the guard in the judiciary is occuring during the same year in which the Fourth Parliament was inaugurated. This immediately brings into sharp focus the need to emphasise the common understanding of the separation of powers without the debilitating effects of the overlaps that might have occurred had one arm of the state attained incumbency earlier than the other. Had there been overlaps between the dawn of the Fourth Parliament and the changing of the guard in the judiciary, the residual effects of one on the other could have lingered and the relationships going forward would have been characterised by one arm trying to assert its space over the other.
In this, we are one with Montesquieu who proclaimed, about three centuries ago, the sanctity of the separation of powers, when he aptly observed, and I quote:
Were the executive power not to have a right of restraining the encroachments of the legislative body, the latter would have become despotic; for as it might arrogate to itself what authority it pleased, it would soon destroy all the other powers.
As the judicial guard changes, we as government reiterate this noble sentiment and further recommit to the upholding of the ideals of the separation of powers.
Members will recall that the era of former Chief Justice Ismail Mahomed ushered in a transition from parliamentary sovereignty to the supremacy of the Constitution. Under the leadership of Chief Justice Chaskalson, and later Chief Justice Langa, the Constitutional Court established itself as the fortress of our constitutional jurisprudence.
The judgments of the Constitutional Court, as our apex court, not only constitute legal precedents for all our courts in this great republic, but also provide a treasure trove of points of reference to many judgments of the courts in other world democracies. This was acknowledged by over 63 judiciaries who attended the first World Conference on Constitutional Justice, held in South Africa in January 2009.
The tributes and accolades showered on former Chief Justice Langa by his colleagues, chief justices across the globe, at this conference and by our own President Jacob Zuma today, in this august House, signify the immense contribution that Justice Langa has made in the transformation of our judiciary and society at large.
I have personally known Chief Justice Langa since the tough years of our struggle for democracy in South Africa. He has come through the ranks in the judicial sector, having started as a court interpreter and exiting at the highest office of the judiciary in our land. [Applause.]
He and his family members used to visit us in exile, and he was there to receive me when I was released from prison, having accompanied me to prison! [Laughter.]
He also shaped my earlier career as a young lawyer by employing me as a projects co-ordinator while he was the president of the National Association of Democratic Lawyers. I want to assure Chief Justice Langa that his efforts were not in vain, as I have found that my pupillage in his employment has been useful in my current portfolio! [Applause.]
I therefore wish to thank former Chief Justice Langa and the three justices of the Constitutional Court who retired with him, Justices Sachs, O'Regan and Mokgoro, for a journey well travelled. We wish the former Chief Justice well in his retirement, and I do trust that we will continue to seek his judicious wisdom and counsel. It is, Chief Justice Langa, not a worn-out phrase that judges, like good soldiers, never retire.
Sothole, Madevu, nina bakwaKhanyile, onhliziyo zimhlophe, elal' ezaleni kuse beyiconsa ngokusasa. Bhukuda kwesinengwenya! Ngwane! Gudukazi! Lala mbijana nogwaja ozikhundlakhundla, esinye esokulala esinye esokwethamela; Mncwayo! Sothole! [Ihlombe.] [Clan names.] [Applause.]
I have also known Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo for a very long time, as a fellow combatant during the dark ages of apartheid. He was detained between 1976 and 1977 for fighting against the unjust system. He later went on to practise as a legal practitioner to defend those who were victims of this very system. We graduated from the same university in 1976, the same year that the young students dared to lay down their lives for a better South Africa.
I remember that in 1973 he created a sensation when he became the first student I knew at the university who once enjoyed a flight from Durban to Johannesburg! [Laughter.] I was able to enjoy a flight for the very first time in 1977, when the ANC, incidentally President Zuma, sent me from Maputo to Dar es Salaam. [Laughter.]
Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo has been part of the judicial machinery since April 1996, having first been appointed as Acting Judge of the Cape of Good Hope and then appointed Acting Judge President of the Labour Appeal Court in 1997. He taught at highly acclaimed institutions such as the University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard and Stanford Law Schools. He served on the Constitutional Court during the eras of both Chief Justice Chaskalson and Chief Justice Langa.
His strong leadership qualities, impeccable judicial track record and clear foresight will not only strengthen and enhance the judiciary as one of the three branches of the state, but also contribute to the realisation of a truly transformed and accessible justice system that this country has yearned for for years.
Even before the President could nominate him to his judicial leadership position and before the Judicial Service Commission could find him to be a suitable, fit and proper person for the highest office within the judicial sector, all judges of the Republic of South Africa and his peers had, during the judges' conference held in July 2009, recognised his leadership qualities and attributes by entrusting him, together with Justice Mogoeng Wa Mogoeng who was recently appointed to the Constitutional Court, with the responsibility of overseeing the implementation of the judges' conference resolutions.
As has been acknowledged by most of the speakers during this debate, Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo assumes office at a critical time, when the judiciary is facing numerous challenges, some of which have been mentioned in this debate. I have no doubt in my mind that Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo will be equal to all those challenges. He has, as his second in command, Deputy Chief Justice Moseneke, who also has profound leadership qualities. I'm confident that through their leadership, the public's confidence in the judicial system will be restored.
I have trust that under their stewardship, the judiciary will continue to complement the other two branches of the state in the quest to build a nonracial and nonsexist society in which every citizen enjoys fundamental rights and freedoms.
I have assured the Chief Justice and all the heads of courts of my unwavering support for the judiciary in the realisation of this goal, and will do so within the confines of the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law, which underpin our constitutional democracy. [Applause.]
As you pick up this baton to steer the judiciary to greater heights, Chief Justice Ngcobo, it will always be useful to remember that you are ...
... Fuze! Ndawonye! Mashiy' amahle sengathi azoshumayela. UnguMapholoba owavuk' ekuseni wancinda umunwe, wakhomba phezulu, lakhanya bha ilanga. Sibhebhe kaSilwane, Nkodoma wakoNjilo ibinda langalakhe. Kuthiwa inkosi kayiqedwa. [Ihlombe.] [Clan names.] [Applause.] Debate concluded.
The Speaker of the National Assembly adjourned the Joint Sitting at 15:59.