Legal tit-for-tat rages in DA leadership over new post
● The internal DA row over the new post of second deputy chair of its federal council has deepened, with Gauteng MPL Khume Ramulifho obtaining a legal opinion that MP Natasha Mazzone should not have been given the job.
Mazzone was appointed at the recommendation of the DA federal legal commission after the post was created at the party’s federal congress in April.
She had received the second-highest number of votes for the position in balloting at the congress. The race was won by Thomas Walters.
Ramulifho, who was also on the ballot, immediately challenged Mazzone’s appointment on procedural grounds.
He maintained that the congress in April had decided that the new position should only be filled this month, when the party holds a sitting of its federal council.
Ramulifho wrote to federal council chairman James Selfe requesting him to take the matter to court.
Selfe then sought independent legal opinion on the matter but has declined to share the opinion with the Sunday Times.
Now Ramulifho has obtained a legal opinion, from Advocate Jonathan Kaplan, that supports his own view.
Kaplan said the federal legal commission had made the wrong decision.
“In this matter, notwithstanding the amendment of the constitution to provide for two members to serve as deputy chairperson, the election of the second deputy chairperson was never ratified by congress,” wrote Kaplan.
“Until such time as the defect is ratified by congress it remains a defect and I am of the view that the appointment of the second deputy chairperson on April 8 is invalid and of no force and effect,” he said.
Ramulifho declined to comment and referred the Sunday Times to Selfe.
In April the Sunday Times reported that Ramulifho was planning to take the DA to court over the matter.
At the time he said he was shocked that the matter had been decided by the party’s legal commission as there was no structure or body with powers to overturn decisions taken by the party’s conference.
Selfe confirmed on Friday that he received Ramulifho’s legal opinion and that the matter would be on the agenda of the party’s next federal executive meeting.
“I cannot speak for the party. I personally regard it [Kaplan’s legal opinion] as superficial,” said Selfe.
He said the legal opinion obtained by the party reached “an entirely different conclusion” to the one presented by Ramulifho.
Mazzone said she would wait for the official legal opinion of the federal executive, as the party leadership had agreed would be the best course after Ramulifho lodged his initial protest.
She said she had got more votes in April than Ramulifho.