Mbenenge's legal counsel accuses gender expert Vetten of bias in her analysis
Advocate Muzi Sikhakhane said Lisa Vetten had deliberately omitted parts of the interactions Andiswa Mengo had with the judge president.
The Judicial Conduct Tribual hearing into the sexual harassment claims against Eastern Cape Judge President Selby Mbenenge in Rosebank, Joahnnesburg on 15 January 2025. Picture: Zoleka Qodashe/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - Legal counsel for Eastern Cape Judge President, Selby Mbenenge, has accused gender expert, Lisa Vetten, of being biased in her analysis of the interactions between the top judge and high court secretary, Andiswa Mengo.
Advocate Muzi Sikhakhane said Vetten had deliberately omitted parts of the interactions Mengo had with the judge president.
Sikhakhane was cross-examining Vetten before the Judicial Conduct Tribunal sitting in Johannesburg, probing allegations of sexual harassment that Mengo levelled against the judge president.
The senior counsel said the tribunal cannot rely on Vetten’s evidence, calling it deficient due to her alleged bias.
Sikhakhane is expected to continue with his cross-examination of the expert witness on Tuesday, before bringing witnesses in Mbenenge’s defence.
It’s anticipated that five witnesses, including the judge president, will be called.
In a lengthy exchange between Vetten and Sikhakhane, the latter said the tribunal could not trust the seasoned expert.
“A tribunal cannot and should never trust an expert who supports a particular version or who is sympathetic to a particular version in that litigation. Lisa Vetten, you are an intellectual, and I respect you. If we find in litigation that the expert cherry picks what suits them, what is sort of consistent with what they want cannot be trusted.”
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