[2][3][4] In July 2010, the National Assembly's justice committee decided unanimously that Mpumlwana's failure to disclose a civil judgement against him during the nomination process meant that he was not fit and proper to serve on the SAHRC.

[6] The commission has been involved in a number of controversies ranging from accusations of racial double standards,[7] promoting racist practices,[8] political bias,[8][9] to hosting a toxic work culture.

[14] Priscilla Jana, a commissioner responsible for race and equity issues, has stated that the SAHRC is "purposefully lenient to black offenders in incidents concerning racial utterances made to white victims because of the historical context".

[15] In July 2023, the Johannesburg High Court set aside the SAHRC ruling that Julius Malema's utterances at a 2016 gathering were not hate speech.

[7] The SAHRC CEO, Vusumuzi Mkhize, was placed on precautionary suspension in 2024 for making politically and racially disparaging remarks about the then newly formed Government of National Unity in a hot mic incident.