Newly sworn-in member of Parliament (MP) John Hlophe is now set to earn a over R100,000 per month as a representative of the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party in the National Assembly, but that’s a far cry from what he used to earn a few months ago.
Hlophe was part of a cohort of MK Party representatives who took their oaths after missing the first sitting of Parliament on 14 June 2024, after unsuccessfully trying to interdict the ceremony.
And now that he and other MK reps – such as Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, Des van Rooyen and Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s husband David Skosana – are now part of the House, they are all set to earn about R1.2 million per year, including benefits such free flights and accommodation.
However, this is significantly less than what he was earning as judge president of the Western Cape as recently as three months ago.
John Hlophe loses ‘salary for life’
Before he was impeached by MPs for gross misconduct and formally stripped of his robes by President Cyril Ramaphosa, John Hlophe was earning roughly a total of R2,304,449 per annum.
And he was set to earn a salary for life as judge, including benefits such as medical aid and a car allowance. Now, he also loses the title of “judge”, another consequence of being impeached.
Mbekezeli Benjamin of Judges Matter told TimesLIVE in March 2024 that this salary-and-benefits-for-life deal was created to protect judicial independence.
Hlophe’s total pay package was about R190,000 per month as judge president, but it has now dropped by almost R50,000 as MP. However, he will probably earn a little more than an ordinary backbencher, since he is the MK Party’s leader in the House, as announced late last week.
EFF’s Busisiwe Mkhwebane also takes salary cut
Another member of the impeached club – like Hlophe – who is now earning significantly less than before, is Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) MP Busisiwe Mkhwebane.
Before she was impeached by MPs in 2023 and removed as Public Protector by Ramaphosa, “on the grounds of misconduct and incompetence”, Mkhwebane was earning close to R2.4 million per annum, putting her monthly pay package at close to R200,000 per month.
Now that she is an ordinary MP, her total salary has also tumbled to approximately R100,000 per month.