PHUTI MOSOMANE
NATIONAL Assembly Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, survived her first motion of no confidence after Members of Parliament (MPs) voted against the motion tabled by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).
The EFF’s motion was defeated by a vote of 234 in opposition and 42 in favor, with 73 MPs abstaining.
“This afternoon, 234 Members of the NA voted against the motion to remove the Speaker and upheld Parliament’s position that the Speaker acted in accordance with the provisions of the Joint Rules of Parliament. Only 42 voted in support of the motion, while 73 abstained,” said Parliament’s spokesperson Moloto Mothapo.
The vote was conducted by means of a manual voting system and roll call.
Mothapo said the Speaker appreciated the debate on the motion against her as it did not only strengthen democratic engagement and accountability, but also helped her to learn from constructive criticism where it was made.
ANC Deputy Chief Whip Dorries Dlakude said: “The Parliament of RSA is a construct of our democratic governance ideals. At its core, this Parliament is chiefly constituted to serve as a conduit for advancing the transformative.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) abstained from voting on the motion of no confidence on the Speaker was seen by some as “merely spitefulness which will not see oppositions defeat the ANC anytime”.
Rule 28 makes provision for the House to remove the Speaker or Deputy Speaker from office by resolution in terms of Section 52(4) of the Constitution.
According to this rule, a motion for the removal of the Speaker from office must comply, to the satisfaction of the Deputy Speaker, with the prescripts of any relevant law or any relevant rules and orders of the House and directives and guidelines approved by the Rules Committee before being placed on the Order Paper and must include the grounds on which the proposed removal from office is based.
“The motion was brought by the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Julius Malema, following an order during the 2023 State of the Nation Address for the EFF Members to leave the Chamber, after defying Speaker’s directive to refrain from raising frivolous points of order,” said Mothapo.
“The EFF Members instead charged towards the podium, which necessitated the Speaker to call for Security Services to remove them.”
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