The Speaker in the New Constitutional Design in South Africa: Has Independence Turned into Partisanship?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/2522-6800/15869Keywords:
Speaker of the National Assembly, executive, President, independence, partisanship, accountability, separation of powersAbstract
The Speaker as head of the National Assembly—the popular chamber of Parliament—has emerged as a crucial institution in South Africa’s new constitutional design. The office is expected, among other functions, to steer the National Assembly to ensure that the executive branch of government is held accountable. Accountability is a foundational value of the new constitutional dispensation in terms of section 1(d) of the Constitution. Parliament’s role of holding the executive accountable is concretised in section 55(2) of the Constitution. The notion that Parliament will exercise oversight over the executive is based, among others, on the presumption that the Speaker, as the leader of the National Assembly, will be independent, impartial and fair when discharging her functions. However, the past 30 years have demonstrated that this presumption is incorrect. The sections of the Constitution related to the appointment of the Speaker, her removal from office, and the exercise of the Speaker’s functions in general suggest that the office is inherently partisan. The practice also points to a partisan rather than independent speakership. The purpose of this article is to critique the presumption of the Speaker’s independence. The article uses two practical examples in contemporary constitutional history—the Nkandla and Phala Phala sagas—to demonstrate that the institution is inherently partisan in its broader constitutional scheme and praxis.
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Gauteng Province Legislature v Kilian and 29 Others 2001 (2) SA 68 (SCA).
Helen Suzman Foundation v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others 2015 (2) SA 1 (CC).
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Moch v Nedtravel (Pty) Ltd t/a American Express Travel Service 1996 (3) SA 1 (A).
President of the Republic of South Africa and Others v South African Rugby Football Union and Others 1999 (4) SA 147 (CC).
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Legislation
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Powers, Privileges and Immunities of Parliament and Provincial Legislatures Act 4 of 2004.
Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act 12 of 2004.
South African Union Act, 1909.
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