ANC not on collision course with judiciary - Zuma

Neither is SA headed for a constitutional crisis, as has been suggested by some, he says. Zuma's comments come at a time when former ANC National Executive Committee member Kader Asmal has initiated a campaign in support of the Constitution, which includes seeking signatories to a petition upholding the Constitution. Zuma said he could not respond to Asmal's campaign because ANC procedure dictated that any such campaign needed to be properly discussed within the party's structures before it could be adopted. 'In the ANC we initiate campaigns after discussion so I would not be able to comment on the matter,' he said. The report says Zuma also broke his silence over suggestions by some legal experts that his letter to the Constitutional Court had constituted a 'threat' to the highest court in the land. He said: 'The courts are there so we can all defend ourselves. I have done nothing unconstitutional. I am entitled to make such an inquiry because it affects me. I have a right like every other citizen to express my concern because it has a direct bearing on my matter.' Full Business Day report

However, a Financial Mail report suggests a constitutional crisis cannot be averted, whatever the Judicial Services Commission decides on the strand-off between Cape Judge President John Hlophe and the Constitutional Court. It points out that should the JSC rule against Hlophe, it will have to convince two-thirds of the National Assembly to agree to impeach him. 'It is unthinkable that the National Assembly would rule against the recommendations of the JSC,' says one academic. But, notes the FM, with the matter fast taking on political undertones, and ANC Secretary-General Gwede Mantashe linking it to Zuma's legal woes, it is not inconceivable that ANC MPs will refuse to act against Hlophe. Since all 11 judges are part of the complaint against the Cape Judge President, finding in favour of him will place the entire Constitutional Court in an untenable position. 'In the worst-case scenario, such a situation means that at the very least the Chief Justice and his Deputy will have to resign,' the FM quotes a source close to the JSC as saying. Full Financial Mail report (subscription needed)