Johannesburg - Are motions without notices on their way out – even if just temporarily – in an effort to stop party politicking in the House?
Discussions in Wednesday’s chief whips forum could lead to a concrete proposal after concerns were raised over the past weeks’ escalating blocking of motions without notice – the parliamentary tool to pay condolences, recognise achievements in sport or science or note events countrywide. If such a motion is objected to, it is not recorded in the Hansard, or transcript of a sitting.
Over the past few weeks, politicking ratcheted up as the EFF objected to motions of fellow opposition parties – including the Freedom Front Plus’s condolence for poet, playwright and literary expert Professor TT Cloete and another wishing Muslims happy Eid.
In one bizarre incident recently, the ANC objected to an EFF motion congratulating Orlando Pirates for winning the Carling Black Label Cup. But when the DA wanted to congratulate the team’s coach for the victory, the EFF blocked the motion.
Until recently, the tussle over motions without notices has been between the ANC and EFF, with the parliamentary majority party frequently blocking such motions from the third-largest party. But in a sign of tension in opposition ranks, the EFF has used its objections against fellow opposition parties’ motions.
This comes amid the EFF getting the cold shoulder from other opposition parties since its “pay back the money” fracas during the mid-June presidential question slot, which meant not a single answer could be given.
The first sign of an opposition backlash against the EFF came when all the other parties adopted the new rules on evicting unruly MPs from the House to prevent disorder.
Now political parties are frustrated about the blocking of motions without notices. During last week’s programming committee, the IFP suggested an interim freeze on such motions slots.
“It’s really become a joke,” said IFP chief whip Narend Singh, adding that it did Parliament’s image no good. ANC chief whip Stone Sizani supported the suspension of motions without notice until all revised rules were finalised.
The National Freedom Party agreed, but DA chief whip John Steenhuisen cautioned that the rules should not be altered because of “the EFF’s childish blocking of motions”.
Speaker Baleka Mbete saw off an ANC push for a vote on the matter, and instead asked the chief whips to discuss it further this week.
The Star