National Assembly speaker Baleka Mbete refuses “snap debate” on the economic crisis in SA

21 June 2017

We should be debating the fact that we are in deep economic trouble in South Africa.

However, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, has refused my request for a debate on an urgent matter of national public importance, in terms of National Assembly Rule 130, to debate measures to deal with the economic crisis in South Africa.

The reason my request for a “snap debate” on measures to deal with the economic crisis was refused is absurd. The Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, believes “the matter can be considered by some other means in the near future”. However, she must know:

- the debate on the Appropriations Bill [B5-2017] was an opportunity to debate a R767 billion appropriation, to fund 40 national departments in 2017/18, and provided no opportunity to properly debate the economic crisis; and

- the next opportunity for Members Statements is 22 August 2017; the next opportunity for oral questions is 23 August 2017; and if a written question was submitted today it would, at best, be replied to on 14 July 2017.

The Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, knows there is absolutely no prospect of this matter being dealt with by other means in the near future and is simply protecting President Jacob Zuma and Finance Minister, Malusi Gigaba, from a tough debate on measures to deal with the economic crisis in South Africa.

We are not going to take this lying down and will continue to fight to schedule a national debate on the economic crisis in South Africa.

Issued by David Maynier, DA Shadow Minister of Finance, 21 June 2017