Probe into Zuma ’ s Q&A unavailability
THE National Assembly has instituted an investigation to find out who is to blame for the “confusion” over President Jacob Zuma’s availability to answer questions in the House.
The House’s programming committee also rejected the Presidency ’ s announcement on Wednesday that Zuma was only available for an extra question day on November 3.
They have instead resolved to call him in April, saying it was their constitutional obligation to hold him to account at a date determined by them.
Zuma stunned MPs on Wednesday during his first Q&A of the year when he told them that nobody had ever asked him to appear before parliament to take questions following the aborted session of August 21 last year.
This was despite earlier assurances by National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete that she had been in discussions with the Presidency about a date suitable for him to come to parliament and deal with questions stemming from the August 21 session.
Angry MPs sharply raised the issue at yesterday’s meeting, with some telling deputy Speaker Lechesa Tsenoli that the matter needed to be probed as they were tired of being “fed hogwash” as lawmakers.
DA chief whip John Steenhuisen was the first to express his frustration over how the whole affair had been handled by both the Presidency and parliament.
“We can’t come to meetings like this and be fed, frankly, hogwash by people,” he said, demanding that Mbete’s office should provide proof of its correspondence with Zuma’s office. He also said the committee should seek answers regarding the role of Zuma’s parliamentary counsellor, Ebrahim Ebrahim.
“If the parliamentary counsellor has not communicated to his own principal, then there’s a fundamental breakdown in the way in which this parliament is run,” he said.
Tsenoli asked for MPs to be “temperate ” about the matter and mind their language.
He said Mbete would deal with the matter upon her return from an official trip in Namibia.
MPs also complained that Zuma’s office appeared to be undermining the authority of parliament after it emerged that presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj told a radio station that the president had set aside the date of November 3 as an additional day for oral questions for this year.
After an hour-long debate on the matter, ANC chief whip Stone Sizani tabled a compromise deal that pleased all parties attending the meeting.
Sizani proposed that either April 16, 23 or 30 should be set aside as another question day for Zuma.
“Breakdown in way parliament is run