Zuma won’t fire ministers
President will not dismiss cabinet members based on claims of incompetence
PRESIDENT Jacob Zuma scoffed at calls for him to fire two of his cabinet ministers who have been at the centre of claims that they are incompetent. “The rule of law does not say you punish a person because you suspect a person is going to commit a crime. It’s almost like the law of the jungle,” Zuma told MPs during his quarterly question-and-answer session in the National Assembly yesterday.
Zuma stood by Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini and Communications Minister Faith Muthambi.
The Constitutional Court on Wednesday questioned Dlamini’s competence during an application from rights groups to force the SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) to find a lawful means of fulfilling its obligation to pay grants.
This follows the failure of Sassa and Dlamini’s department to take over the payment of grants due to the fact that the contract with Cash Paymaster Services was found to be illegal by the country’s highest court as far back as 2014.
Zuma denied there was a crisis and repeated the assurance that come April 1, welfare grants would be paid, despite the Constitutional Court not having ruled on the matter.
Opposition party MPs did not relent, asking Zuma why he was not acting against errant ministers.
IFP MP Sibongile Nkomo wanted to know whether Zuma would publicise his evaluation of the competence of both Dlamini and Muthambi “given their recent appalling and blatant disregard of the values of the constitution, of the oath of office they took in relation to Sassa and the SABC debacle, respectively,” Nkomo said.
On March 7, Parliament formally adopted a report by MPs tasked with conducting an inquiry into the troubled South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).
The report recommended that Zuma evaluate whether Muthambi was still fit to hold her position.
She was also referred to Parliament’s Ethics Committee.
“Equally, with Minister Muthambi, there has been a report as far as I know, and I think she has said she is taking the report on review. We don’t know what will be the final action, how do you then take action to a minister who’s still looking at what she does not agree with?” Zuma said.
He insisted opposition parties’ demands were impossible to comply with.
“That’s demanding too much of the president. Once we do so, we are going to say this president is a dictator. He just decides even if there are no facts.” - ANA FRIDAY MARCH 17 2017