EFF statement on the Question Session with the President
06 August 2015
The EFF has once more proven that Zuma is just in the presidency to eat. All the questions posed to him today exposed that he has no knowledge of what his minsters are up to. This was demonstrated by his answer to questions regarding the suspension of mining rights that Minister Ngoako Ramahlodi has implemented on Glencore as well as questions regarding Minister Nhleko’s pronouncements that judges colluding with certain individuals to produce court rulings.
President Zuma just simply said he is not aware of these pronouncements. He also could not provide answers on the question of illicit financial flows that multinational companies are engaged in eroding the tax base of the country.
Zuma is running a company called South Africa as a CEO earning close three million and enjoying further millions in benefits but he has no idea what is happening in South Africa. Zuma also avoided the question on Nkandla arguing that parliament is engaged in a process and therefore we must all wait for the Ad Hoc Committee of his garden boy Minister Nhleko to be concluded. He says this when many public servants have been put through a disciplinary process on the basis of the Public Protectors report.
The EFF always knew that given the opportunity Zuma will refuse to answer the question directly and thus we have since applied to the Constitutional Court (CCT143/15) this morning to order him to abide by the remedial action of the Public Protector that he must pay back the money. The EFF is confident that this is an important step since parliament has been rendered toothless by an ANC speaker who refused to demand that Zuma answers the questions put to him in a satisfactory way.
Regardless of the wishes of many in the ruling party, the EFF successfully acted in parliament in the same robust manner it has always done, without any fear of being forcefully removed.
This means parliament has wasted R18 million per annum on monthly salary of burly bouncers paid R30,000 each per month, because there is no need for them. The EFF has further filed an application with the Western Cape Hight Court yesterday to challenge the unlawful rule amendment adopted in a rush by Parliament through the collusion of the ANC, the DA and other opposition parties; a rule amendment which authorises common assault of members of parliament who refuse to obey unlawful and unjust rulings of the ANC speaker.
This application will ensure that this rule which has created this wasteful expenditure is removed from parliament. Nevertheless, today is a demonstration that we shall never be moved or intimidated from doing our job in holding the executive accountable.
Statement issued by the Economic Freedom Fighters, August 6 2015
