The Week Ahead: Oversight visits & committee business dominate the week

This week marks the mid-way point of the third term and the programme has a familiar pattern: lots of unglamorous legislating, oversight and scrutinising, with some set piece battles in prospect.

Fireworks are expected during the debate on the parliamentary ad hoc committee report on the Nkandla upgrades. MPs visited ...

Infographic: Women & Persons with Disabilities employment targets

On Wednesday, 12 August 2015, the Department of Public Service and Administration told MPs that departments did not meet the target for employing 50% of women and 2% of persons with disabilities in the public service sector. According to the Department’s records, employment of women at Senior Management Service level ...

Representation: can we question the legitimacy of parliament?

By Raymond Suttner

In its opening words, phrased as a declaration and making known to all, the Freedom Charter embraces a claim to popular sovereignty and democratic rule, in the name of the people of South Africa. It immediately attacks the legitimacy of apartheid South Africa and simultaneously calls for ...

Five female MPs on their passion for politics

By Sheilan Clarke

Statistics show that 35.2% of South African cabinet ministers are women while 41.5% are parliamentarians. This means that of the 54 cabinet ministers, only 19 of them are women and out of a total of 400 parliamentarians, 166 are women. This is according to a United Nations ...

The Week Ahead: Executive scrutiny & legislative action

There's both high policy and low politics on display in the main chambers this week. The National Assembly offers a blend of members' statements, a discussion of national importance, legislative business and oral questions to the Deputy President and Peace and Security Cluster. The programme is a bit more pedestrian ...

Unite Against Corruption: Stand against corruption; defend the Office of the Public Protector

UAC

Supporters of "Unite against Corruption" are asking the public to join them, 7 August 2015, to take a stand against government corruption and to protect the Office of the Public Protector:

You can participate by:

  • Picketing outside Parliament in Cape Town at 12pm to 3pm.
  • Forming a human chain outside ...

What the rules say about the removal of MPs from Parliament

By Pierre De Vos

In what is becoming a ritualised enactment of political theatre, EFF leader Julius Malema is this week set to ask President Jacob Zuma yet again when he will comply with the remedial action imposed by the Public Protector and when the President will “pay back the ...

The Week Ahead: Spotlight on President, rules and Nkandla Committee

After a low key week, the National Assembly chamber has shifted gears and arranged a busy programme, which includes ministerial statements, policy debates, oral questions and the processing of assorted bills and statutory instruments. It’s rather quieter in the NCOP chamber, where internal work dominates and any kind of contested ...

Infographic: Youth development and the National Development Plan

On Wednesday, 29 July 2015, Parliament held a Round Table for young parliamentarians from all legislatures in the country to debate the implementation of the National Development Plan (NDP), specifically focusing on challenges facing the youth. The idea is to ensure that policies are developed to realise the objectives of ...

The Week Ahead: More wrangling expected in Parliament

There is some very significant Committee action this week that will keep the legislature firmly in the spotlight. Regrettably, this means there will also be plenty of opportunity for posturing and point scoring as political parties try to attract publicity and out manoeuvre each other.

The parliamentary ad hoc committee ...