News / Africa
Zuma wants SA Constitutional Court powers reviewed
13 Feb 2012 at 05:50hrs | Views
South African President Jacob Zuma wants to review the country's Constitutional Court's powers, according to a report on Monday.
"We don't want to review the Constitutional Court, we want to review its powers," Zuma told The Star newspaper during an interview.
"It is after experience that some of the decisions are not decisions that every other judge in the Constitutional Court agrees with."
This was reportedly part of a democratic process to counterbalance the powers of the three arms of the state.
According to the newspaper the issue was raised by a deputy minister and ANC leaders at the party's national executive committee meeting two weeks ago and discussed by Cabinet ministers. Zuma told the newspaper it was a "general societal issue" that was being raised.
He questioned the logic of having split judgments and said judges were influenced by the media.
"How could you say that [the] judgment is absolutely correct when the judges themselves have different views about it?" Zuma told the newspaper.
He said if the decisions by Parliament could be challenged there was nothing wrong with questioning the judiciary.
"We don't want to review the Constitutional Court, we want to review its powers," Zuma told The Star newspaper during an interview.
"It is after experience that some of the decisions are not decisions that every other judge in the Constitutional Court agrees with."
This was reportedly part of a democratic process to counterbalance the powers of the three arms of the state.
According to the newspaper the issue was raised by a deputy minister and ANC leaders at the party's national executive committee meeting two weeks ago and discussed by Cabinet ministers. Zuma told the newspaper it was a "general societal issue" that was being raised.
He questioned the logic of having split judgments and said judges were influenced by the media.
"How could you say that [the] judgment is absolutely correct when the judges themselves have different views about it?" Zuma told the newspaper.
He said if the decisions by Parliament could be challenged there was nothing wrong with questioning the judiciary.
Source - Sapa
