Election of Chairperson; Committee Programme

Meeting report

Election of Chairperson
Mr Gurshwyn Dixon, Committee Secretary, welcomed all Members to the Committee and informed them that that the first order of business was the election of a Chairperson in terms of the rule of Parliament. Accordingly, he asked for nominations.

Ms M Boroto (ANC; Mpumalanga) said that she wanted to nominate Mr T Chaane (ANC) to chair the Committee.

Mr J Bekker (DA, Western Cape) seconded this proposal.

Mr Dixon asked whether there were any further nominations. None was forthcoming and Mr Chaane was duly elected unopposed.

Committee Programme
The newly appointed Chairperson thanked all the Members for electing him. He hoped that with the support and cooperation of all Members, the Committee would be able to execute the work entrusted to it within the expected time. He had been advised that the Committee’s life span would come to an end, at the end of this month. The Committee had to report back to the House by 30 May 2013.

The Chairperson mentioned that the Committee Secretary had, in consultation with him, drafted a programme that would guide the work of the Committee. He noted Members belonged to various committees with their own busy schedules for this month. The Committee would therefore have to choose times and dates to meet that would accommodate all Members. On that note he outlined the draft programme for consideration and stressed that it could be changed if necessary.

Mr J Gunda (ID; Northern Cape), agreed that for now the programme looked fine stating that should anything happen the Committee could juggle things around. He had assumed that the life span of the Committee would be until next month, nevertheless he was convinced that the Committee could finalise the bill in time even if it meant meeting until late in the evenings. He would accept the programme as it stood now.

Ms Boroto mentioned that she was not happy with life span given that committees were busy with budget votes this month. She noted that this bill had been with the National Assembly for over six months so it was unfair to expect this Committee to process it in less than one month. It would not be possible for the Committee to complete this by the end of this month because it also had plenaries.

Mr Bekker pointed out that he would not be able to attend meetings on 28 and 29 May 2013 due to prior appointments. He would communicate this to the Secretary.

The Chairperson welcomed Mr D Bloem (COPE; Free State) and Mr F Adams (ANC; Western Cape) to the meeting. He informed them that he had been elected to chair the Committee and that Members were currently reflecting on the proposed programme.

The Chairperson noted that this was a busy month and suggested the Committee first get briefed on the bill by the Department of State Security and if necessary it could request for additional time to process the bill thereafter. The programme would serve as a guide and if there were any challenges, the leadership of the institution would be consulted. The intention was to try as much as possible to work within the life span of the Committee.

Ms M Dikgale (ANC; Limpopo) agreed with the sentiments expressed by Mr Gunda.

The Chairperson asked if there were any objections. Thereafter, he said that the first meeting would take place next week Tuesday immediately after the sitting. The Committee would be briefed by the Ministry. The exact time of the meeting would be communicated once there is certainty how long the sitting would be.

The Committee adopted the programme.

Mr Bloem asked whether the Chairperson had received the apologies from him and Mr Adams.

The Chairperson confirmed that these had been received by the Committee Secretary.

The meeting was adjourned