By Canny Maphanga
Mbenenge's counsel was at pains to advance an argument that Judges' Secretary, Andiswa Mengo was a "willing participant"
This as the use of emojis between Mengo and Mbenenge was placed under the lens, in the probe which seeks to establish whether the top Judge sexually harassed Mengo via in-person and electronic communication, as Mengo alleged in her complaint”
Judges' Secretary, Andiswa Mengo's use of emojis in the just over 800 exchanges between her and Judge President Selby Mbenenge were the central focus of the latter's counsel in their bid to show that she was a "willing participant", including the advances were not unwanted, which is the central question at the core of determining sexual harassment .
Advocate Griffiths Madonsela SC on behalf of the top judge, specifically chose to focus on Mengo's use of emojis in response to alleged advances from Mbenenge. Such as her use of the monkey emojis which Madonsela argued was flirtatious.
"I am asking you in the context of this discussion, does the context of the (unintelligible) discussion about exchanging pictures between Miss Mengo and the JP (Judge President) and punctuating the comment about "me (being Miss Mengo) wanting money or you JP, are you going to give me money if I want it and then punctuating that with the monkey closing its face, is that inconsistent with JP's understanding of the use of emoji as being flirtatious," Madonsela said.
A suggestion Forensic and Legal Linguist, Dr Zakeera Docrat disagreed with, within the context. Madonsela went on to suggest that at no point did Mengo rebuff the alleged overtures (communication) from the top Judge. A suggestion Docrat disagreed with.
"No I would disagree with that because when I gave my evidence yesterday, Chair. There were instances in which I said that there was a specific, I think Advocate Scheepers led me through the evidence when there was a sticker sent to say "no honourable member don't do that" within that specific context. So, I cannot give a blanket response," Docrat said.
As the WhatsApp exchanges continued to carry the hearing, the lens shifted to the initial complaint Mengo made to the Judicial Service Commission on the 17th of December 2022, with the official who assisted her, Kultwano Moretlwe called to the stand.
This information matters, as the Tribunal previously heard that retired Chief Justice Raymond Zondo was allegedly "not satisfied" with Mengo's initial complaint and requested that she lodge a new one. This runs contrary to Mengo's evidence that she was told her initial complaint was "misplaced" and that she had to write a new complaint.
This evidence will also play a crucial role in determining whether Mengo wrote her new complaint without a copy, as she previously testified. The Tribunal will continue with Moretlwe on the stand.
---SABC---
