Madam Deputy Speaker, President Zuma's remarks last week to the effect that his government intends to review the powers of the Constitutional Court are not only a serious affront to the principle of the separation of powers, but also undermine public confidence in the executive's commitment to upholding the Constitution.
The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, the hon Jeff Radebe, has already set out plans to "review the impact of Constitutional Court decisions over the past 17 years". How is it that the executive can initiate a review of the decisions of another arm of state when it has itself been the subject of some of these decisions?
We have been told that a research institute will conduct the review, but what measures will be put in place to ensure it is an unbiased process? What does Minister Radebe plan to do with the information collected? Indeed, why is this review needed in the first place?
The government has a duty to uphold the principle of the separation of powers and to respect the independence of the judiciary. If the source of unhappiness is the occasions on which the judicial rulings have taken the executive to task, then the solution is to amend the executive's conduct and not the powers of the court. I thank you. [Applause.]