Retselisitsoe was born in Matatiele, Eastern Cape. After matriculating from Thaba-Jabula Senior Secondary School (Soweto), he went to work as a security officer at SuperMart Rusteng. Thereafter, he pursued his studies and obtained a Diploma in Human Rights from the then-University of North-West (Mafikeng) and an LLB degree from the North-West University (Mafikeng). He completed his LLM degree in International Human Rights Law from the University of Notre Dame (USA), and an LLD degree from the University of South Africa.

Phooko describes himself as a Pan-African scholar whose research interests are largely focused on the African continent.

Prof Phooko is a member of the Electoral Court of South Africa. He has also an ad hoc a Judge of the High Court, Pretoria where he presides over various cases ranging from insolvency law, customary law, and the law of contract. His written judgments are also available on SAflii.

Retselisitsoe has inter alia received various forms of funding from the Attorneys Fidelity Fund, The James Smith Educational Trust, and the Ismail Mahomed Fellowship to pursue both his undergraduate and postgraduate studies. He is also a recipient of grants from the United Nations and the African Institute for International Law that enabled him to further his knowledge in Public International Law.

Prior to joining the North-West University, Retselisitsoe was the Head of the Department and an Associate Professor in the Department of Jurisprudence, at the University of Limpopo. He has inter alia worked as a lecturer and senior lecturer at the University of South Africa where he taught modules such as Research Skills for Law and supervised both LLM and LLD students. He further worked as a Candidate Attorney at the Legal Resources Centre (Durban) where his duties included representing both farm and shack dwellers who faced imminent evictions. Retselisitsoe has also worked as a Law Researcher at the Constitutional Court of South Africa for retired Justice Zak Yacoob.

Retselisitsoe further worked as a Project Facilitator for the Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) wherein he conducted a study commissioned by the LSSA about the uneven distribution of legal work in the legal profession and released a draft report titled “Distribution of Legal Working in the Legal Profession in South Africa 2015/2016. He was also a member of the Action Group on Briefing Patterns which was instrumental in the development, signing, and adoption of the Procurement Protocols for the Legal Profession at Emperors Palace, Johannesburg on 28 June 2017.

Retselisitsoe has published articles in peer-reviewed academic journals in the areas of international law, philosophy, and human rights. He has also conducted research and presented academic papers nationally and abroad.

Recently, Retselisitsoe was a managing editor of a book titled The Development and Application of SADC Community Law in Member States. The book has been recommended for publication by Juta Publishers and it will be launched late in 2023.

National Research Foundation of South Africa Rating Y2 rated researcher

National Research Foundation of South Africa research grants

Awarded the National Research Foundation of South Africa research grant 2019-2024

Awarded the National Research Foundation of South Africa research incentive grant 2022