DA's bizarre complaint to Ethics Committee

7 April 2016

It is to be expected that the likes of the DA would seek to make maximum political capital out of the Constitutional Court judgment even through absurd publicity stunts, some of which not only border on self-parody but makes a mockery of serious parliamentary committees.

One such media stunt is the party’s baffling and uninformed announcement that they intend to report ANC MPs who formed part of the “Nkandla Committee” to the Ethics Committee of Parliament.

It is unheard of anywhere in the world that MPs would be penalised for fulfilling their parliamentary duties merely because certain decisions of parliament are, from time to time, set aside after a judicial review.

If the DA’s bizarre logic was to be believed, history would be replete with thousands of MPs of various parties, who as part of Parliament, passed pieces of legislation or other decisions which were later overturned by the Courts.

The party’s latest stunt totally makes no sense and is unworthy of the ethics committee’s time.

Our system of checks and balances is self-corrective in nature, it ensures that where unconstitutionalities happen – as they would in any vibrant constitutional democracy – they are picked up and corrected. This augurs well for the strengthening of our state institutions and our democracy.

Issued by Moloto Mothapo on behalf of the Office of the ANC Chief Whip, 7 April 2016