NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SPEAKER'S DECISION ON REQUEST FOR SCHEDULING OF DEBATE ON MOTION OF NO CONFIDENCE
Friday, 30 June 2017 - The Democratic Alliance has written to the Speaker asking that its motion of no confidence in the President, initially submitted on 30 March 2017 and scheduled for 18 April, be scheduled at the earliest convenience. The United Democratic Movement and Economic Freedom Fighters have also asked for the scheduling of the motion and also motivated for a secret ballot.
This follows the decision of the Constitutional Court, on 22 June 2017, in which the Court stated that the Speaker has the discretion to determine whether a motion of no confidence should be voted upon by a secret or open ballot.
In terms of Rule 129 of the National Assembly, once a motion of no confidence is requested, the Speaker must accord such motion due priority and before scheduling it must consult with the Leader of Government Business and the Chief Whip of the Majority Party. The motion of no confidence must be scheduled, debated and voted on within a reasonable period of time, given the programme of the Assembly.
The Speaker has undertaken the consultation as required by the Rules and the decision is for the motion of no confidence to be scheduled for Thursday, 3 August 2017. This will necessitate that the National Assembly sits earlier than initially planned. This decision has taken into account that some committees of the Assembly are currently undertaking oversight visits and Parliament has set aside July for constituency work.
The matter of whether the vote will be conducted through a secret ballot is receiving consideration. The United Democratic Movement has also asked to meet with the Speaker to discuss the matter of a secret ballot. Mindful that the powers to make a determination regarding voting procedures solely rest with the Speaker, as clarified by the Constitutional Court, the Speaker has invited interested parties to submit their views regarding their preferred means of voting on this particular Motion.
The views of the parties, considered together with a host of other factors, including the prevailing conditions, would assist the Speaker to arrive at a well-informed and logical decision. Rule 26 of the Assembly rules enjoin the Speaker to canvass the views of office-bearers and structures with regard to certain matters.
Parties, particularly those that have submitted requests to meet the Speaker, are advised rather to take advantage of this process to register their standpoints, where applicable. Political parties represented in the National Assembly are requested to make their submissions by 14 July 2017. The Speaker will make her decision whether the motion will be processed through a secret ballot or not before the scheduled debate on 3 August.
Should there be a need for any structure of the National Assembly to meet in preparation for this debate, the relevant details will be communicated to parties.
Statement issued by Parliament, 30 June 2017
Update:
DATE FOR MOTION OF NO CONFIDENCE IN THE PRESIDENT CHANGED TO 8 AUGUST 2017
Sunday, 2 July 2017 – The Speaker of the National Assembly has, following further consultations with political parties in Parliament and with the Executive, decided to revise the date announced for the debate on the Motion of No Confidence in the President of the Republic. The new date for the debate on the Motion is now Tuesday, 8 August 2017, and no longer 3 August 2017, as previously announced.
There was an oversight during the initial consultations and determination of the originally announced date, which overlooked the fact that a Cabinet Lekgotla had already been set for that week.
The deadline for political parties to submit their views regarding their preferred means of voting on this particular Motion, that is, whether by a secret or open ballot, remains 14 July 2017.
The Speaker will make her decision regarding the appropriate voting procedure before the scheduled debate on 8 August 2017.
Statement issued by Parliament, 2 July 2017
