Manana must resign as MP following his guilty plea

13 September 2017

Today, the DA Women’s Network (DAWN) picketed alongside the DA Student Organisation (DASO) outside the Randburg Magistrate’s Court where the former Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Mduduzi Manana, made his second court appearance after having admitted to assaulting a woman.

See photo here.

The court heard Mduduzi Manana plead guilty to the charges of assault that were brought against him. We welcome the plea and reiterate our call for full accountability as the matter continues to unfold in court.

Mduduzi Manana has stepped down from his position as a Deputy Minister of Higher Education following the incident, however, he is still a Member of Parliament (MP). Mduduzi Manana must now resign as an MP as there is no place for people who abuse women in the National Legislature, where the people are represented. MPs have a key leadership role to play in society; having Manana stay on as an MP would be a slap in the face of that leadership role as well as any effort to stop women abuse.

There are many women who are suffering in silence because they are afraid to speak out about their ordeal. Holding Mduduzi Manana accountable will prove to the public that cases of violence against women can be resolved and does lead to justice and accountability. It will give a voice to the women who are afraid to speak out and encourage them to seek justice.

I was joined by the Deputy Federal Chairperson of DASO, Sam Beynon, and Nazley Kahn, the National Steering Committee Deputy Chairperson of DASO, in leading a picket outside the Magistrate’s Court today. The DA will not stand by and watch as women suffer in silence. We will stand up to any man who violently assaults women.

The DA will work tirelessly to ensure that we fight the injustices and inequality that women are facing in our country.

Issued by Suzanne Clarke, DA Gauteng Chairperson, 13 September 2017