Race-based criticism of judge slammed

ANC Youth League president Fikile Mbalula called Judge Squires an ‘apartheid judge’, while the Young Communist League (YCL) accused him of being a racist because he allegedly dragged Deputy President Jacob Zuma\'s name through the mud in a 160-odd page judgment finding Durban businessman Schabir Shaik guilty of fraud and corruption, reports the Mail & Guardian Online. ‘Did we expect anything else from the judge? He is a cynical, mad person who is still raw because his apartheid existence came to an end. We will never judge our leaders according to the standards of an apartheid judge,’ YCL national director Buti Manamela said. The SAHRC said it has no doubt that the judgment will be long discussed. ‘However, it must be a cause for concern when the judge comes under attack purely on account of his race or origins and the judgment is rejected purely on account of this …it is simply unacceptable when race is used, in the manner in which it has been in this instance, to cast doubt on the work of the court,’ Full Mail & Guardian Online report

Meanwhile, Shaik’s sentencing proceedings have drawn considerable media interest . The hearing resumes before Judge Hilary Squires in the Durban High Court today. Advocate Francois van Zyl will lead evidence seeking leniency for Shaik, who has been convicted on one count of fraud and two of corruption. The minimum sentence on each count is 15 years\' imprisonment. A News24 report suggests Van Zyl will produce information relating to Shaik\'s Nkobi Holdings. Shaik’s attorney Reeves Parsee said Van Zyl intended to lead evidence about Nkobi Holdings unless the court ruled against it. ‘If the court rules against it, we will call one witness to give evidence relating to company information,’ he said. Parsee declined to say why company information was relevant in mitigation of sentencing. Full report on the News24 site