State Capture: Deputy Chief Justice Zondo says he won't protect 'rogue' judges

• Deputy Chief Justice Zondo says the state capture commission will not protect judges implicated in corruption.
• Former State Security Minister David Mahlobo has denied having any judges on his payroll.
• Mahlobo claims the attack on the judiciary threatens South Africa's democracy. 

Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo says the commission of inquiry into allegations of state capture will not protect judiciary members implicated in corruption.  

"The one thing the nation must be reminded of is that on a number of occasions, the Chief Justice [Mogoeng Mogoeng] has said if anybody has evidence of corruption on the part of any judge, they must come forward. To the best of my knowledge, no one has come forward other than what I heard here." 

He said it was important to preserve the integrity of the judiciary without excusing corruption.

"We want the integrity of the judiciary not [to be] affected adversely. People throw around accusations with no substance. I want you to know that there will be no attempts by me or the commission to sweep it under the carpet."  

The commission has been listening to testimony on how the former Minister of State Security David Mahlobo received millions of rands from the State Security Agency (SSA) to influence judges to rule in favour of former President Jacob Zuma.

Denials

Mahlobo denied receiving money and said attacks on the judiciary threaten the country's democracy. 

"Some things are a security risk to the democracy we enjoy. I refute it with the contempt it deserves. They can criticise judges like any other person, but it should not be an easy thing to make inferences without evidence."  

He said people who claim he was paid have no evidence against him. 

"There was no money delivered to me."  

Mahlobo was confronted with evidence that he introduced an SSA agent to two judges who were supposed to help influence members of the judiciary in the Western Cape to rule in their favour of the spooks in the signal jamming incident in Parliament in 2015. 

This is contained in an affidavit by an SSA agent called "'Steven". 

"The gist of the matter is that this person alleges I introduced them to judges. I never introduced him to judges, and I never issued any instruction that judges be paid. It's an important issue we have to clarify to the nation.  

"Steven," said there was one black judge called "Ngwenya" and a white one whose name he does not remember. 

"This same guy can't say who are [sic] these people. He wants to create innuendos on our hard-fought constitutional democracy. I will never be a party to that, where judges are insulted. I have an idea which judge they are trying to implicate. I will help that particular judge."