Cape Town - Parliament has set aside four hours for the preparation and election process of the new Speaker.
The institution announced that the process would require that ballots for candidates contesting the position be printed.
The four hours would also include an hour to count the votes.
Members of Parliament have been asked to be physically present in the House for the casting of the secret ballot.
“The entire voting process is expected to last for about 4 hours, with at least 1 hour dedicated to counting the votes,” said Parliament’s spokesperson Moloto Mothapo.
“As soon as the voting is completed, Judge (John) Hlophe will suspend proceedings to allow for counting of the votes. Officials of Parliament, designated as the Returning Officer and Assistant Returning Officers, will remove the ballot boxes and all papers from the NA Chamber to a room, to be counted.
“The votes will be counted in Judge Hlophe’s presence and only he and the designated returning officer and assistants to the returning officer may be present in the room.
“Once the votes have been counted, the returning officer must report to Judge Hlophe, informing him of the result of the counting of the votes. On receiving this report, the House will reconvene and Judge Hlophe will announce the result of the election.
“The Returning Officer must retain the nomination papers, the used ballot papers and their counterfoils in a sealed packet for at least one year. The sealed packet may not be opened except by order of a court.”
Political Bureau