Mengo’s lawyers to fight back against Mbenenge misconduct finding

Judges’ Secretary, Andiswa Mengo’s lawyers are gearing up to make submissions to the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) on the Judicial Conduct Tribunal Report outcome against Judge President, Selby Mbenenge, which they charge “romanticises sexual harassment in the workplace”.

This, after the Tribunal Report recommended a lesser sanction for misconduct against the Eastern Cape’s top judge, which effectively saves him from possible impeachment.

The report is now in the hands of the JSC, who hold the final cards on whether they will uphold the recommendation or reach a different conclusion.

RELATED VIDEO | BREAKING NEWS | Tribunal recommends misconduct against Judge Mbenenge

The complainant in the landmark sexual harassment probe against the top Judge of the Eastern Cape, Judges’ Secretary Andiswa Mengo has not thrown in the towel yet, following the Judicial Conduct Tribunal’s “misconduct” finding against Judge President Selby Mbenenge.

WATCH | Wise4Afrika Director Brenda Madumise-Pajibo believes that judge’s secretary Andiswa Mengo was failed by the JSC, as she had lodged a complaint about three years ago and nothing was done. Her comment comes after the Judicial Conduct Tribunal found EC Judge President Selby… pic.twitter.com/vBYtmHqKvp

— SABC News (@SABCNews) January 31, 2026

This as Mengo’s lawyer, Chriscy Blouws, says that they are set to make submissions to the JSC on the said report and are not ruling out any legal recourse available to their client.

“What the tribunal has done in its outcome is create a separate process and standard that judges are being held to, that would not be accepted in any other workplace. In no workplace would it be acceptable for a manager or a colleague to ask a woman to take off her jacket or to remove any part of her clothing. Instead, in this finding, we see that the tribunal decided that there was, in fact, no power imbalance between the Judge President, the most senior person in her workplace, and herself, a secretary and a junior staff member within the court,” says Blouws.

The report further made a loss of credibility finding against Mengo and found that she had lied under oath.

Blouws, however, charges that this is incorrect as the credibility finding was based on a process she followed.

“Everything that was before the tribunal was, in fact, provided by Ms. Mengo, while the Judge President was the one who deleted everything from his phone when he knew that a legal process was already ongoing. It is, therefore, unfortunate that the tribunal decided it needed to attack her credibility in order to make the finding that it did,” adds Blouws.

Blouws has flagged another concern that the Tribunal’s finding, in her view, has turned an unlawful act of sexual harassment into romance, which may send a chilling message to women, who wish to report sexual harassment in the workplace in the future.

“The danger with that narrative is that it is, in fact, a defence that many rapists and abusers use within our court system in South Africa every day. Even when we look at social media and the comments relating to this case, this is a rhetoric that has been reinforced. We fear that it will have a chilling effect and send a chilling message to women who wish to report sexual harassment within their workplaces,” she adds.

Mengo will not be returning to the Eastern Cape Division of the High Court and remains relocated for her physical safety.

RELATED VIDEO | Mbenenge sanction now awaits JSC decision
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y7-QFemWhw