ANC 'shuts down' National Assembly for 75 days
29 March 2018
The National Assembly will be in recess for 75 days, after the ANC "pushed through" an amendment of Parliament's programme to allow for a prolonged "constituency" period.
The decision, welcomed by the ANC and slammed by the DA as an attempt to undermine Parliament's oversight role, was taken on Wednesday in the Joint Programming Committee.
According to the decision, Parliament will shut down between June 18 and August 13, while the National Council of Provinces will be on constituency period from July 2 to July 30. A constituency period is meant for MPs to interact with members of the public.
The extension comes amid persistent speculation that an early election might be called, despite ANC secretary general Ace Magashule's insistence on Sunday that this wasn't discussed at the party's NEC meeting over the weekend.