Ministers Cele, De Lille and Speaker Mapisa-Nqakula a no-show at Parliamentary fire meeting
21 January 2022
This morning, the Joint Standing Committee on Financial Management of Parliament was due to receive a briefing from the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele; Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Patricia De Lille; and the Speaker of the National Assembly, Nosiviwe- Mapisa-Nqakula on the ongoing investigations into the fire that destroyed Parliament.
At the eleventh hour, the committee was notified that the meeting has been canceled due to the unavailability of the Ministers and the Speaker. This is unacceptable and a complete disregard for Parliament’s oversight role.
The DA will be writing to the Chair of Chairs, Mr Cedrick Frolick and the Leader of Government Business, Deputy President David Mabuza to urgently intervene on this matter. The Ministers must be reprimanded by Parliament as a matter of urgency and the Chairs of this committee sternly reminded of their role in holding the executive to account.
This committee has summoned the Minister of Police in particular to account for the security breach that led to the burning down of Parliament while under the 24-hour guard of the South African Police Service (SAPS). The Minister is yet to provide an account to Parliament since the fire broke out and a suspect was arrested.