Constitutional Court rules in DA’s favour and affirms that the ANC power grab in Tshwane was unlawful

The DA welcomes the dismissal of Gauteng Cooperative Governance MEC Lebogang Maile’s appeal and the long-awaited Constitutional Court judgment on placing the City of Tshwane under administration.

The Constitutional Court’s ruling vindicates the DA’s stance that MEC Maile’s decision to dissolve Council and place the City of Tshwane under administration was unlawful.

It was obvious from the court judgment that the ANC’s action to put the City of Tshwane under administration for a period of eight months, from March 2020 to October 2020 was a politically motivated power grab on the part of MEC Maile.

There was no justification for removing elected DA councillors from their positions and replacing them with administrators who left the City in chaos and near financial ruin.

The Constitutional Court has affirmed the original judgment by the Gauteng North High Court in April 2020 and the ruling by the Supreme Court of Appeal in October 2020, affirming the following: “The running of the City of Tshwane by an unelected administrator is the very antithesis of democratic and accountable government for local communities, enshrined in s 152(1)(a) of the Constitution”.

The court’s order properly ensures that the councillors duly elected by the citizens of Tshwane in 2016 are allowed to resume their rightful constitutional role, powers and responsibilities.
The order gives effect to the rights of voters and preserves the autonomy of local government and it cannot be faulted.

For months the residents of Tshwane suffered under unelected and unlawfully deployed ANC administrators imposed by MEC Maile.

In just eight months, they brought the city to its knees, collapsing service delivery and incurring a R4.3 billion deficit.

During their tenure critical operations effectively came to a stop.

The City was totally unresponsive to the needs of its residents as their legally elected representatives had been removed from office.

After the City was placed under administration it became clear that there were major fractures within the ANC in Tshwane as their councillors contacted the DA to take the decision to court to have it overturned so they could return to their jobs.

For 8 months we fought in the courts to protect the rights of our residents and we succeeded, such that at the end of October 2020 we were able to return to the office. We immediately started work to stabilize the city’s finances and restore basic operations and service delivery.

This judgment is a victory for the DA, but more so it is a victory for the residents of Tshwane, our Constitution and local governance.

This ruling has ensured that our Constitution is protected and upheld and that the separation of powers between different spheres of government is entrenched.

Today’s judgement by the Constitutional Court will set an important precedent to protect municipalities from unlawful power grabs to drive political agendas.

The DA will ensure that MEC Maile is personally held to account for all legal costs and for wasting taxpayers money. MEC Maile must also be fired for his role in this.

The perilous state of chaos and mismanagement that we inherited in October 2020 is a direct result of the ANC’s unlawful actions and the incompetence of the administrators he deployed to the city.

Premier David Makhura should also use this court judgement as a learning experience, and demonstrate his seriousness about consequence management.

Residents of Tshwane deserve remedial action for the suffering they incurred during this period of the unlawful administration.

The DA was the only party that stood firm during this period of unlawful administration and fought against the ANC-led provincial government’s unlawful power grab.

We will always stand for the rule of law and fight for the rights of residents, and we will win because the DA gets things done.

Gauteng ANC Stance On Social Development Minister Lacks Compassion

The Gauteng ANC’s inability to condemn and call for the axing of Social Development Minister, Bathabile Dlamini, speaks volumes about the lack of compassion that the party has for the 17 million grant beneficiaries who have been held to ransom by the Minister’s incompetence.

In keeping with its tradition of indecisiveness on issues of major importance, like the e-toll saga, the ANC in Gauteng have shown once again that they have the best interests of Jacob Zuma and his acolytes at heart – not the people they swore an oath of office to serve.

Minister Dlamini’s contempt for Parliament and accountability is an affront to democracy and an insult to the millions whose lives hang in the balance because of her inaction. To remain silent is to condone the actions of a minister who is not fit to hold office.

The DA places it’s faith in the Constitutional Court’s ability to find a solution to the grant payment system and will continue to call for the removal of Minister Dlamini from her post.

Media enquiries:

John Moodey

DA Gauteng Leader 

082 960 3743

 

Warren Gwilt 

Economic Cluster Manager 

073 601 6144

[Image source]

DA Welcomes eNatis Court Ruling

Tasima – eNatis

The DA in Gauteng welcomes the Constitutional Court ruling that will ensure the eNatis system is now managed by the Department of Transport and not Tasima.

Long overdue, the eNatis system will ensure that drivers are held accountable for negligent and dangerous driving habits. It will also increase the provincial licensing department’s capacity to better serve the public and improve testing and monitoring of the issuing of vehicle licenses.

I will submit questions to Gauteng Transport MEC, Ismail Vadi, to gauge whether or not the province is ready for the roll-out of the eNatis system and when the system will be fully implemented across Gauteng.

 

 

Media Enquiries:

Neil Campbell MPL

DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Roads and Transport

082 387 2540

[Image source]

Public Protectors Recommendations Binding On Gauteng Infrastructure Department

Public Protector’s Findings

The Constitutional Court ruling on Nkandla, which emphasised the binding nature of the Public Protector’s findings, means that the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure (DID) must pay out a sub-contractor who worked on the infamous Suikerbosrand project in 2014 a sum of more than R9.6 million.

The Public Protector indicated that this amount should be paid over a period of two months, however DID – blatantly ignoring the Public Protector wrote to the contractor indicating that they would not pay.

Years down the line, and after placing the contractor in a financially precarious position, DID has agreed to pay – as long as it runs its own parallel investigation, much like the Cabinet did when it tried to avoid the Nkandla scandal.

Claims of Damages

Recently, a different contractor approached the Public Protector requesting that her office investigate DID for claims of damages suffered whilst working on a DID site.  Despite referral to the Head of Department of DID as well as the Chairperson of the DID Portfolio Committee, the department has still not carried out the action proposed.

Neither the Department, nor its political head can feign ignorance as to the binding nature of the Public Protectors recommendations.

I will be writing to Jacob Mamabolo, the newly appointed MEC of DID drawing his attention to these matters, and should he fail to respond, I will ensure they are referred back to the Public Protector.

 

Media enquiries:

Alan Fuchs MPL

DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Infrastructure Development

060 558 8313

[Image source]

DA Calls For Debate On Matter Of Urgent Public Importance

The Democratic Alliance in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature has written to Speaker, Lenteng Mekgwe, calling for a debate on a matter of urgent public importance in terms of Rule 128 of the House.

Given Gauteng Premier, David Makhura and ANC Gauteng Chairperson, Paul Mashatile’s decision to break ranks with the ANC and publically condemn President Jacob Zuma after the Constitutional Court ruled against him, it is the DA’s view that residents of the province are entitled to know whether the provincial government’s allegiances lie with the president who violated his oath of office, or with the people.

Date: Tuesday, 26 April 2016
Time: 10:00 am
Venue: Gauteng Provincial Legislature, Johannesburg

There will be opportunities for interviews and photographs. Members of the media are welcome to attend.

 

Media enquiries:

Warren Gwilt

DA Communication and Research Manager

060 963 8320

[Image source]

DA Leader Maimane To Lead March For Change To The ConCourt

Today, 15 April 2016, Democratic Alliance Leader, Mmusi Maimane MP, will lead a March for Change to the Constitutional Court. This follows the groundbreaking Constitutional Court judgment, which stated that Jacob Zuma had violated his Oath of Office and the Constitution.

The DA has committed to various forms of mass mobilsation and protest in order to highlight the importance of the judgment and the ANC’s refusal to remove a President who does not care about the Constitution and the people of South Africa.

In order for South Africa’s constitutional democracy to survive and thrive, Zuma can no longer occupy the Presidency.

We encourage all South Africans who believe in change and the future of South Africa to join the march to the Constitutional Court.

The DA Leader will be joined by DA Gauteng Provincial Leader, John Moodey MPL, National Spokesperson, Refiloe Nt’sekhe MPL, Johannesburg Regional Chairperson, Khume Ramulifho MPL, Cape Town Mayor, Patricia de Lille, Midvaal Mayor, Bongani Baloyi, Tshwane Mayoral Candidate, Solly Msimanga MPL, and Makashule Gana MP.

The march will take place as follows:

 

Date: Friday, 15 April 2016

Time: 10:30

Starting Point: Pieter Roos Park, Empire Road, Johannesburg

GPS Coordinates: 26°11’05.4″S 28°02’33.2″E

There will be photo and interview opportunities.

 

 

Media Enquiries:

Mabine Seabe

Spokesperson to the DA Leader

084 677 7851

 

Nkele Molapo

Media Officer

072 041 4842

076 127 0719

Nkandla: DA Moves To Impeach Zuma Following Constitutional Court Ruling

Impeach President Zuma

Following today’s judgement by the Constitutional Court in the much anticipated Nkandla matter, the Democratic Alliance (DA) has officially begun the process to impeach President Jacob Zuma, in terms of Section 89(1) of the Constitution.

The Constitutional Court – the highest court in the land – found that President Zuma failed to uphold, defend and respect the Constitution as the supreme law of the land by disregarding the Public Protectors’ report. This pivotal judgment confirms the DA’s long held contention that President Zuma seriously violated the Constitution when he sought to undermine the Public Protector’s remedial actions by instituting parallel investigative processes, and his subsequent failure to implement her remedial action.

Section 89(1) of the Constitution states that “The National Assembly, by a resolution adopted with a supporting vote of at least two thirds of its members, may remove the President from office only on the grounds of – 

 (a) a serious violation of the Constitution or the law;

(b) serious misconduct; or

(c) inability to perform the functions of office.”

Constitutional Court Ruling

Today’s ruling is clear in this regard: President Jacob Zuma’s action amounts to a serious violation of the Constitution, and constitutes grounds for impeachment.

Up until recently, the President has argued that he was not obliged to heed this remedial action, and that such remedial action was simply advice which he could take or ignore. In his letter to the Public Protector dated 11 September 2014, he argued that her role was akin to that of an Ombud and she could not issue “judgements to be followed under pain of a contempt order.” Instead he described her reports as “useful tools in assisting democracy in a cooperative manner, sometimes rather forcefully”. He specifically denied that they were binding on him.

On the 09 February 2016 counsel for President Zuma, The Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete and The Minister of Police, Nathi Nhleko, all eventually conceded that indeed the powers of the Public Protector have legal consequences and can only be challenged by way of judicial review. This is bizarre given that the DA had been arguing this from the very beginning.

Indeed it has been our assertion that Parliament failed to satisfy its constitutional mandate to hold the Executive to account in terms of section 55(2) of the Constitution by adopting the Police Minister’s report which we contend is- in and of itself- born from fatal errors in law because this amounts to the establishment of a parallel process as expressly prohibited by the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA). This was done- no doubt- to circumvent the remedial actions as ordered by the Public Protector and to thwart the discharge of her mandate. They have effectively aided and abetted the President in his vexatious attempts to unravel our hard won constitutional order.

Public Protector

Our Constitution is binding on all organs of state, including the President. To have ignored a constitutional organ, in the form of the Public Protector, for over two years, and to have employed a series of stratagems, including the Police Minister’s Report and the three ad hoc parliamentary committees, to “second guess” and “ignore” the Public Protector required judicial action.

Having succeeded in obtaining the Constitutional Court’s determination; I have therefore written to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, notifying her of such, and have tabled a notice of motion resolving to remove President Zuma from office in terms of section 89(1)(a) of the Constitution. Included therein are the President’s past and present failings to act in manner commensurate with the Constitution as evidenced by court judgements finding adversely against his conduct in the al-Bashir and Simelane debacles and the attempt to extend the term of office of the Chief Justice. In all these cases the Courts found that his actions were inconsistent with that of the Constitution.

Moreover, the Office of the Public Protector remains an integral part of a functioning democracy, and today’s judgment provides legal certainty and clarity as to the Public Protector’s powers.

Today’s finding by the Constitutional Court is a victory for our Constitution, a victory for the Rule of Law, and a victory for the South African people.

 

 

Media Enquiries:

Mabine Seabe

Spokesperson to the DA Leader

084 677 7851

City of Tshwane Wastes R1.6m To Thwart Internet Connectivity Roll-Out

Fibre Optic Broadband

The City of Tshwane (CoT) has incurred legal costs of R1.6 million in an attempt to prevent the roll-out of much needed fibre optic broadband to the city’s residents and businesses.

In 2011 Link Africa, a digital solutions company, sought to install a fibre-optic network through the CoT by making use of the city’s existing sewer and storm water infrastructure.

City Manager, Jason Ngobeni, placed restrictions on Link Africa’s plans and last year sought and interdict from the Pretoria High Court requiring that the company gain permission to access the city’s infrastructure before carrying out work.

CoT VS Link Africa

The interdict was not granted which led the CoT to challenge the matter in the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court ruled in favour of Link Africa forcing the city to concede.

The attempt to thwart a project that will have massive benefits for residents of Tshwane is beyond belief.

Over a R1 million in state funds have been wasted in the process – money which could have been more wisely spent on improving the lives of the city’s residents.

It is evident that the CoT does not place economic growth and opportunities high on its list of priorities.

 

Media Enquiries:

Adriana Randall MPL

DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Finance

060 556 4342

[Image source]