Text of the prepared address by COPE President Mosiuoa Lekota to the debate on President Zuma’s State of the Nation Address, Parliament, 17 February 2016

THE CONSTITUTIONAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS OUR COUNTRY IS IN

National Assembly...

The office of the President of our country is occupied by someone who broke his Oath of Office two years ago already. Therefore that oath has lapsed.

Our Executive Authority has been coerced and led into supporting the occupant of the office of the President to support him in his refusal to comply with section 182 (1) ( C ) of the Constitution; that is to implement the remedial action of the Public Protector.

We the legislature, contrary to the anticipation of the Constitution have been divided into two parts or factions – one faction consisting of two or three parties collaborating with the presiding officers and another smaller faction strenuously trying to hold the executive to account.

We, the Legislature of the nation are now held to ransom by presiding officers who believe that their function is to shield the executive from our efforts to hold it (“The Executive”) to account.

The orders of the Judiciary are being disobeyed. Opposition parties approached the Western Cape High Court which ruled that the remedial action should be obeyed.

However, its injuction was defied by the executive led by an individual occupying the office of the President.

The result of all is, is that the individual occupying the office of the President has undermined the effectiveness of all three arms of state.

That is, this individual has rendered the Constitution of our country null and void.

To this conundrum we “urgently” must find an appropriate response.

We need a new beginning.

COPE calls for a referendum on how to elect the president. The present system is found wanting and is dangerous to the ideal of the separation of powers.

Finally, the biggest danger we face today is that of our credit rating being reduced to junk status. We need action to prevent that from happening.