Cape Town - The National Assembly on Thursday shot down a request to seek an extension from the Constitutional Court for more time to propose more amendments to the bill that will allow independent candidates to contest elections in Parliament and provincial legislatures.
This after IFP chief whip Narend Singh on Thursday asked the programme committee to make the application because the home affairs portfolio committee did not get enough time to consider the Electoral Amendment Bill.
Singh made the request hours before the National Assembly voted to pass the bill to be sent to the National Council of Provinces for concurrence.
He noted that the bill was introduced by the executive in January, six months before the court’s deadline.
ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina said the proposal was made to the chief whips forum and that the issue was not raised by the committee.
“So it is too late now. The Concourt gave an extension until 10 December. We will be seen as a rogue Parliament that at the eleventh hour wants to derail this process,” Majodina said.
EFF chief whip Floyd Shivambu said the bill should be passed as planned on Thursday.
Shivambu took a swipe at civil society groups for wanting to strong-arm Parliament to change the electoral system.
“The constitution permits us to be the ones to draft the legislation and not be superimposed on what should happen. Not even the Concourt can tell us what to write in law and speak on the constitutionality of laws we pass,” he said.
Shivambu also said civil society should accept that elected MPs were the ones that could pass and write legislation.
“We can't be superimposed as to what electoral reforms and kind of electoral system we should have because we are an autonomous country,” he said, adding that civil society could go to the Constitutional Court for relief when the parliamentary process was concluded.
House chairperson Cedric Frolick said parties could still use the NCOP processes to make proposals when the National Assembly passed the bill.
National Assembly Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said when there was a delay in passing law, it was Parliament that came under the spotlight and got criticised for not passing legislation, including not meeting directives of the court.
“It is never the executive. It will not be the first time we ask for an extension. We did and it was granted. It is likely to put Parliament in a very embarrassing situation,” Mapisa-Nqakula said.
When the bill was up for debate in the House on Thursday afternoon, IFP MP Liezl van der Merwe argued for further consultation on the bill.
“If this bill is referred to the NCOP today, the IFP will call on Parliament to consider beefing up the NCOP process by establishing an ad hoc committee involving all stakeholders, civil society, and the best constitutional law experts to finalise the bill
“It is not too late to include a compromise that will see 50 MPs directly elected from constituencies,“ she said.
However, Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said the criticism on the bill from civil society was misplaced.
“Much of it is based on misunderstanding of the Concourt judgment that it obliges Parliament to change the electoral law beyond accommodating the independent candidates,” Motsoaledi said.
He said the Constitution empowered Parliament to prescribe an electoral system and that further discussions on the electoral system could still be pursued.
When the bill was put to vote, 232 agreed it be sent to the NCOP for concurrence, with support coming from the ANC, EFF, NFP, PAC and Al- jama-ah.
The DA, IFP, Freedom Front Plus, ACDP and COPE voted against with 98 votes.
GOOD party and AIC abstained.
Cape Times