The TRC Cases Inquiry
of Inquiry
The summary
The TRC Cases Inquiry was announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 29 May 2025 to determine whether attempts were made to prevent the investigation and prosecution of apartheid-era crimes. It is chaired by retired Constitutional Court Justice Sisi Khampepe, assisted by retired Northern Cape Judge President Frans Diale Kgomo and Advocate Andrea Gabriel SC, sitting at the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre in Johannesburg. The terms of reference were published in Government Gazette 52749 (RG 11837, P 264). The inquiry has already produced political drama: a recusal application against the chairperson was ruled on 30 January 2026, and the inquiry features a legal challenge brought by former President Jacob Zuma and another applicant (Zuma and Another v Khampepe and Others, case 2026-026936). Public hearings commenced on 4 February 2026.
The mandate
The thread — full timeline
TRC Cases Inquiry announced and gazetted
President Ramaphosa announces the TRC Cases Inquiry to determine whether attempts were made to prevent the investigation and prosecution of apartheid-era crimes. Chair: retired ConCourt Justice Sisi Khampepe, assisted by retired Judge President Frans Diale Kgomo and Adv Andrea Gabriel SC. Terms of reference: Government Gazette 52749 (RG 11837, P 264).
Recusal ruling against the chairperson
The inquiry hands down a ruling on a recusal application against chairperson Justice Sisi Khampepe, signed on 30 January 2026 — a prelude to the Zuma-led legal challenge that followed.
Hearings commence at Sci-Bono, Johannesburg
Public hearings of the TRC Cases Inquiry open at the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre, Johannesburg, preceded by a pre-hearing on 4 February 2026 and letters to interested parties.
Zuma and Another v Khampepe and Others
The inquiry records judgment in the matter of Zuma and Another v Khampepe and Others [case 2026-026936], with a letter to the commission secretariat dated 6 February 2026 — the latest turn in the legal contest over the inquiry's conduct.
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