Thank you hon Minister, hon members, can I have your attention please? Earlier during the debate this morning, some members resorted to language which I deemed inappropriate and unparliamentary. I accordingly requested the members responsible to withdraw the offending remarks - an order with which they complied. I should restate that it is imperative to uphold the dignity and the decorum of the House.
During the exchange, an allegation was made that hon Ntlangwini had referred to another member, hon Magaxa, as a clown. In response to this, I undertook to listen to the recording to ascertain what had been said. According to the recording, hon Ntlangwini said, and I quote: "A clown just comes and says Ms Khawula is dumb." Hon members, Assembly Rule 82 states that: members must refer to one another in respectful terms. In the context of the exchange, it is clear that hon Ntlangwini was referring to hon Magaxa, who had spoken before her. Now the reference to a member as a clown is out of order in terms of the Rules and I must therefore ask that hon Ntlangwini withdraw the comment unconditionally.