Condemning PABASA’s Reckless Interference in LPC Disciplinary Processes
- Bagaetsho
- Apr 23
- 2 min read
MEDIA STATEMENT
Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, 23 April 2025 - Public Interest SA notes with utter dismay the letter circulating via social media and purportedly addressed by the National Executive Committee of the Pan-African Bar Association of South Africa (PABASA) to the Chairperson of the Legal Practice Council (LPC), Advocate Pule Seleka SC. This letter, ostensibly penned in defence of Advocate Dali Mpofu SC, constitutes an alarming and deeply irresponsible affront to the rule of law, the independence of regulatory institutions, and the integrity of South Africa’s legal profession.
While PABASA makes a perfunctory attempt to disclaim any intention to interfere in the disciplinary proceedings instituted by the LPC, its letter proceeds to do precisely that — casting aspersions on the motives of the LPC, impugning its leadership, and characterising its statutory responsibilities as acts of intimidation. These unfounded assertions and thinly veiled threats amount to a blatant and impermissible attempt to undermine the LPC’s constitutional and legislative mandate to regulate the profession without fear, favour, or prejudice.
To suggest that the LPC is engaged in “hatred” or “petty rivalries” for executing its disciplinary duties is not only contemptuous but symptomatic of a broader malaise in certain quarters of the profession that treat public accountability as optional. More troubling is PABASA’s warning that the LPC’s actions may be viewed as “scurrilous” — a statement which borders on institutional intimidation and gross overreach by a voluntary association whose standing cannot rival that of the LPC’s statutory authority.
Mpofu’s conduct, which is the subject of the LPC’s disciplinary scrutiny, is a matter of grave public concern. As a senior counsel and former member of the Judicial Service Commission, his public statements and courtroom behaviour have frequently drawn criticism for being inflammatory, unbecoming, and at odds with the ethical standards expected of legal practitioners. Rather than allow the appropriate structures to undertake their investigative processes independently, PABASA’s intervention signals a dangerous prioritisation of factional loyalty over professional integrity and legal accountability.
Public Interest SA reaffirms its support for the Legal Practice Council and its leadership in executing its mandate to uphold professional standards within the legal fraternity. The LPC must remain steadfast and unyielding in its commitment to preserving the credibility of the legal profession and protecting the public from conduct that brings the profession into disrepute.
We caution all professional associations and political actors against any attempt to interfere with, delay, or delegitimise the LPC’s lawful processes. The rule of law, and by extension our democratic order, depends fundamentally on the independence and effectiveness of our regulatory institutions. No individual — however prominent — is above scrutiny.
Public Interest SA will continue to monitor this matter closely and stands ready to defend the institutional integrity of the Legal Practice Council and the sanctity of South Africa’s legal ethics.
Issued by:Tebogo Khaas
