National Assembly adopts rules for the removal of office bearers of institutions supporting democracy
3 December 2019
The National Assembly (NA) has, during its sitting today, adopted new rules on the removal of office-bearers in the Institutions supporting constitutional democracy.
The institutions are the Auditor General; the Commission for Gender Equality; the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities; the Electoral Commission; the Public Protector; and the South African Human Rights Commission.
Existing Rules of the National Assembly and section 194 of the Constitution only set broad parameters for the removal of office bearers or commissioners in these institutions, and this necessitated Parliament to start a process for new rules in this regard. The new Rules expound on what would constitute the grounds for misconduct, incapacity or incompetence:
“misconduct” means the intentional or gross negligent failure to meet the standard of behaviour or conduct expected of a holder of a public office;