Staff Reporter.
National Assembly (NA) Speaker Thandi Modise has proposed an extraordinary extended debate on the recent civil unrest, looting and destruction of property.
Modise made the proposal in a memorandum to political parties represented in the National Assembly.
In her memorandum, Modise suggested that the debate be scheduled as soon as possible when the NA reconvenes in early August, preferably during the first week of House sittings.
Modise also recommended that reports of committees already involved in oversight activities on the unrest inform the proposed extraordinary extended NA debate, meaning these committees should prioritise their engagements, confer if necessary, and report to the National Assembly as soon as possible before the House reconvenes.
“Deliberation on these reports during the proposed extraordinary debate may lead to further enquiries. So, one or two weeks should be added to the NA’s forthcoming quarter. This would provide more opportunities for questions to Cabinet Ministers and for committee deliberations. Questions to Cabinet Ministers concerned with the unrest should be prioritised.
“The NA Programme Committee (NAPC) will be convened soon to finalise these arrangements. If there are deadlines for Question Sessions, dates may have to be secured and communicated before the NAPC meeting,” Modise said in her memorandum.
Meanwhile the Portfolio Committee on Police says it is steadfast that the executive will be held accountable for security lapses during the looting, violence and destruction of property that affected KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.
Concluding its oversight visit to Gauteng on Wednesday, the committee said it would make a follow-up and ensure that members of the executive are held to account, as per Section 92 (2) of the Constitution.
Committee Chairperson Tina Joemat-Pettersson said Members of the Executive are accountable collectively and individually to Parliament, and it would be a “dereliction of duty on our part as Members of Parliament if we do not ensure thorough accountability”.
“It is on this basis that we will be suggesting to sister committees within the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster to hold joint meetings to get to the bottom of security lapses during the violence and looting.
“The committee believes that a thorough accountability process is essential in preventing the recurrence of the violence in future. The proposal that the committee will make will include a discussion on the functionality of the intelligence apparatus, budgetary shortfalls, as well as collaboration within the cluster,” Joemat-Pettersson said.
The chairperson added that the committee believes that the R11.8 billion cut to the police budget is the root cause of the slow response to looting and destruction of property.
“The acknowledgement that the police were overwhelmed as a result of the lack of human resources and equipment can only be addressed through consideration of the police’s budget,” she said.
Due to budget cuts for two successive years, the police were unable to undertake their annual intake of 7 000 new trainees into the South African Police Service (SAPS).