The regional court president of KwaZulu-Natal, magistrate Sibusiso Eric Nzimande, on Friday described Durban magistrate Stanley Gumede as “a pure gentleman”.
This was in stark contrast to the picture painted of Gumede during a disciplinary tribunal established by the Magistrate’s Commission, in which he was found guilty of nine counts of misconduct.
Gumede, once touted to be the national director of public prosecutions, was charged with transgressions related mainly to his treatment of witnesses while a regional magistrate in Pinetown.
In one instance the tribunal went so far as to find his conduct had been “impatient, intolerant and almost bombastic”.
But when Nzimande was called to testify during Gumede’s sanctioning proceedings, he had only good things to say about his colleague.
He told the tribunal he had known Gumede since 1980.
“When we listen to the recordings of the so called ‘offensive conduct’, what strikes one is that Mr Gumede always spoke in a calm and measured tone. There was never any shouting; there was never any swearing,” he said.
Gumede’s advocate, Jimmy Howse, said to Nzimande, “Now just as you know him as an individual, have you ever seen him – for example – lose his temper?”
“In a nutshell, Mr Gumede is a pure gentleman,” Nzimande replied.
Howse asked Nzimande how he would assess Gumede’s legal knowledge.
“We were at university together, we practised as clerks of the court, prosecutors and then magistrates… He qualifies to be among the best,” Nzimande said.
He had even recommended Gumede for an acting judgeship at one stage: “But the Judge President indicated that with all the dust surrounding Mr Gumede in Pinetown, he could not consider him.”
He said Gumede had “high standards” and he considered him “quite an asset” to the judiciary.
Three months ago, Gumede was moved from Pinetown to Durban.
Nzimande said on Friday that Gumede had approached him and requested some exposure to the civil court.
“How has Mr Gumede’s performance been in the civil court, here in Durban?” Howse asked him.
“Well it’s satisfactory… I haven’t received any complaints or reports,” Nzimande said.
He added that a permanent transfer to Durban would be possible.
Gumede’s sanction has yet to be announced. While he could face being removed from office, the tribunal appears to be considering suspending his sentence for 12 months and having him undergo training.
The director of the SA Judicial Education Institute, Dr Azwindini Tshivhase, was also called to testify on Friday. She said they usually administered courses for groups of at least 15, but that with a request from the regional court president, which Nzimande said he would be willing to make, they could look into putting something together for Gumede.
On Friday, Howse said they wanted to recall one of the women who testified against Gumede during proceedings.
“At the proverbial last minute, Mr Gumede received a call from the attorneys who represent the complainant in one of the counts for which you found Mr Gumede guilty,” he said.
“It transpires she was not aware of the finding of guilt in the charge relating to her… She indicated through her attorney that she wanted to place some issues before this tribunal”.
Proceedings are expected to resume in September.