D-Day for ANC to hand over cadre records
The ANC has until Monday to hand over its cadre deployment records to the DA after the Constitutional Court last week gave the governing party five days to do so.
The apex court threw out the ANC’s appeal against a high court order to disclose its records of appointing party loyalists to key public sector posts. The Constitutional Court said the “application should be dismissed as it is not in the interest of justice for leave to appeal to be granted”.
This effectively means the ANC must now hand over the records of its cadre deployment committee meetings since January 1 2013, when President Cyril Ramaphosa became chair. It has until February 19 to do so.
DA leader John Steenhuisen said on Saturday that the ANC had approached it to ask for an extension.
“You can’t have more time to hand over cadre deployment records,” he told DA supporters who attended the party’s election manifesto at the Union Buildings.
“You have wasted South Africans’ time long enough ... You will comply with the Constitutional Court’s order by handing over these records by 5pm on Monday. If you fail to do so, the DA will use the precedent set in the Zuma case to go back to court for a contempt order that includes prison time for every one of the ANC’s leaders,” Steenhuisen said.
DISCONTENT
The ruling could have farreaching implications for the ANC and the country’s politics. The records could reveal the extent of ANC interference and patronage in the public service and potentially implicate some of its leaders in wrongdoing.
The DA has long challenged the ANC’s cadre deployment policy. It and other opposition parties could use the information to expose the ANC’s failures and scandals and challenge its electoral dominance. The ANC is heading for its worst election performance yet, according to several polls pointing to a dramatic shift in SA’s political landscape amid widespread discontent over endemic corruption, poor services and a stagnant economy.
In September, the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed ANC attempts to appeal against two orders of the high court in Johannesburg that it hand over records of its cadre deployment committee to the DA.
The National Assembly will debate and vote on Tuesday on the Revenue Laws Amendment Bill, which provides for the twopot retirement system, which will come into effect on September 1. It allows workers access to a portion of their retirement funds before retirement.
The portfolio committee on agriculture, land reform & rural development will be briefed on Tuesday on an agreement with the Cuban government on cooperation in matters of animal and plant health, among other things.
The portfolio committee on tourism on Tuesday is set to discuss progress on the forensic report that was commissioned by the tourism department on financial maladministration.
The higher education, science & innovation portfolio committee will be briefed on Friday by the department of science & innovation on its activities in research, development and innovation, “specifically the sector innovation funds and the Industry Innovation Partnership Programme”. The briefing is expected to include discussion on and highlights of reports on the performance of the research & development tax incentive programme for 2019/20 and 2020/21.