Look who's back! Disgraced John Hlophe (MK) and Zizi Kodwa (ANC) return to Parliament
Impeached former judge John Hlophe and corruption-accused Zizi Zodwa were sworn in as members of the National Assembly on Tuesday.
MK Party parliamentary leader John Hlophe sworn in as an MP on 25 June 2024. Picture: GCIS
Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast joins Clarence Ford.
Listen below.
Disgraced former judge John Hlophe has returned to Parliament. He was sworn in on Tuesday, with 57 other uMkhonto weSizwe (MK Party) members.
The members were absent during the first sitting of the National Assembly due to a party boycott of the official proceedings on 14 June.
On Friday, the MK Party confirmed that the impeached High Court Judge President would be its parliamentary leader.
His return to Parliament and possible future appointment to the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) is rightly raising eyebrows, says Breakfast.
"We cannot downplay the seriousness of the allegations that were levelled against him."
- Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast, Political analyst
"What compounds the situation is that he then joins a political party that is led by a person who is accused of breaking the law... Zuma was the one who was embroiled in his case."
- Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast , Political analyst
Meanwhile, there has been criticism of former sports minister Zizi Kodwa's return to Parliament.
The corruption accused was sworn on Tuesday following his appearance in court earlier this month to face allegations of taking bribes from a state supplier.
Kodwa is currently on R30 000 bail.
"It is so disappointing and it explains why the ANC has dropped from 57% to 40%... I mean that is applying double standards."
- Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast , Political analyst
Breakfast says the question he has been asking himself is, 'Can the ANC bounce back?'.
He is not convinced it can.
"With this kind of posture and behaviour, I don't think so."
- Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast , Political analyst
"The brand 'ANC' has been dealt a blow in a big way... I don't think the ANC will ever recover from this."
- Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast, Political analyst
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