Transcript of the speech by EFF leader Julius Malema in the debate in the National Assembly on Removal of the President in terms of Section 89(1)(a) (Draft Resolution), Tuesday, 5 April 2016
Mr J S MALEMA: Thank you very much to the leadership of the EFF and members of the Opposition.
I didn’t think that we were going to come here to repeat exactly what we did with the Public Protector’s report. We now see members of the ruling party trying to second-guess what the Constitutional Court said. We had this debate on the Public Protector, and we gave you guidance on how you need to handle the Public Protector’s report. You are repeating a similar mistake.
When you say a person has failed to uphold his oath of office, it means that that person has failed to uphold, defend and respect the Constitution. You can’t say a person has not breached his oath of office and therefore the EFF did not get what they had asked from the Constitutional Court when the court said this person has failed to uphold, defend and respect the Constitution. That is an oath of office. So, once you fail to do that, no one can argue — not even a Deputy Minister of Justice — that you have succeeded. You didn’t uphold, you didn’t respect, and you didn’t defend the Constitution, but you have succeeded in upholding your oath of office! That doesn’t make sense!
The judges were clear. The President and this Parliament engaged in an unlawful activity. We cannot behave as if the court has not pronounced itself.
Now, the court has made it very clear who messed up. You want us to continue as if it is business as usual. The Speaker of Parliament does not get removed, the President remains, the legal advisors of the President remain, and even after that Constitutional Court ruling, no single individual has been held accountable. And you want us to believe that you are protecting the Constitution and that you live by the rule of law. We are all equal before the law, including Zuma. He must be equal before the law because if the court finds that he has violated the Constitution, he must be subjected to the rule of law.
Inconsistent ... [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Malema, please take you seat. Yes, what are you rising on, hon member?
Mr G S RADEBE: Can hon Julius sit down, please? I want to rise on a point of order.
Mr J S MALEMA: Hey man, I’m not going to sit down! [Inaudible.]
Mr G S RADEBE: Sit down!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Malema ...
Mr G S RADEBE: Sit! Hey! Hey! Hey!
Mr J S MALEMA: I’m not going to sit down!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Malema ...
Mr G S RADEBE: Sit!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: No, hon member ...
Mr G S RADEBE: Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Malema ...
Mr J S MALEMA: I’m not going to sit down!
THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Malema ...
Mr J S MALEMA: I’m not going to sit down! He must sit! If you don’t want to speak, I’m continuing!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: No, hon member ... Hon Malema ...
Mr J S MALEMA: Now, the inconsistency of the Constitution is equal to ...
Mr G S RADEBE: [Inaudible.] ... Julius!
Mr J S MALEMA: ... you cannot be inconsistent with the Constitution and want to tell us you are behaving in a correct manner ... [Interjections.]
Mr G S RADEBE: Hello, Juju! [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon members ... Hon Malema, I have asked you to take your seat. Please do so, sir. The Rules of the House ... [Interjections.] Hon Malema, the Rules of the House apply, so please take your seat. [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: Tell that one not to tell me to sit down. I won’t be told by a backbencher to sit down.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon members, take your seats, all of you! Keep quiet! [Interjections.] Hon members ... take your seats!
Mr J S MALEMA: No, but call that one of yours to order because he can’t tell me to sit down. [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Malema ...
Mr J S MALEMA: Who is he to tell me to sit down?
Mr G S RADEBE: You take your seat.
Mr J S MALEMA: Why must I be told by a marshall to sit down? [Interjections.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Hon Deputy Speaker ... [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon member, please take you seat. Hon Malema, take your seat.
Ms D Z RANTO: Hon Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Hon Dlamini on the other side said “voetsek” in the House. That is out of order!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Who is that?
Ms D Z RANTO: Hon Dlamini ... there!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon members, the Speaker, in opening this debate, appealed to us to avoid using language that is unparliamentary and out of order. Can you please desist from doing that? [Interjections.] Hon members, stop screaming at each other! Be orderly. If you do this again, I am going to ask ... because you are violating Rule 51, I will ask you to withdraw. Proceed, hon member.
Mr J S MALEMA: So, if you can’t listen to us because we are in opposition, at least listen to Kathrada. At least listen to Goldberg. At least listen to real MK generals and not to cooks. Not cookers! Listen to real generals who are saying to you, this is not what they fought for.
I don’t know if Mr Ramaphosa, sitting there, is going to vote against the Constitution. He is the one who led the processes for the adoption of this Constitution. We want to see whether Mr Ramaphosa, Mr Pravin, and Mr Jonas — the darling of anti-corruption — are going to vote for this corruption against the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. We are calling upon you to have another Ben Turok amongst you — another Ben Turok who will vote against a mob. It is better to stand alone and stand for the truth ... Stop thinking through your stomachs!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon member, your time has expired.
Mr J S MALEMA: Use your brains to think! Hon Cronin, hon Blade, follow the Communist Party line. [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order, hon member! [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: Don’t vote for people who want to destroy South Africa ... [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: No, hon Malema, your time has expired! [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: ... or for people who want to destroy our Constitution. [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Malema, your time has expired! [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: Without the Constitution, we are finished! Zuma and the ANC want to convert South Africa into a banana republic! But I can guarantee you ... all of you ... die hele lot ... [the whole lot of you] ... you will never destroy South Africa in our presence! [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: Hon Malema, you are out of order! Order! [Interjections.]
An HON MEMBER: Switch off his microphone! [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Can you switch off his microphone? Switch off this microphone! [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: The EFF will defend this country! [Interjections.]
An HON MEMBER: Julius! Julius! [Interjections.]
An HON MEMBER: Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! [Interjections.]
An HON MEMBER: Skeleton-nyana! A small nyana skeleton! [Interjections.]
HON MEMBERS: CIC! CIC! CIC! CIC! [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! Visitors in the gallery, you are expected not to do what you are doing. [Interjections.] Visitors in the gallery, we welcome your presence, but not your participation in the business of the House. [Interjections.] All of you in the gallery! Hon Singh?
Mr S P MAKWETLA: Hon Deputy Speaker ...
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yes, hon Makwetla? Hon Singh, take your seat.
Mr S P MAKWETLA: May I please address you on a point of order?
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yes.
Mr S P MAKWETLA: I did not want to rise while the leader of the EFF was still at the podium because I did not want to interrupt him. But I find it totally unacceptable that an hon member can yell insults at us and mention us by name while the presiding officer does not call on that member to withdraw and apologise. [Interjections.] I don’t understand that!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Makwetla, thank you. Are you done?
Mr S P MAKWETLA: Yes, that’s my point of order, and I want you to rule on it.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Alright. Hon Makwetla, it is appropriate for members to rise on an issue when it is taking place so that we can rule on that matter as it happens at the time it happens. We will ... [Interjections.]
Hon member, please take your seat. I’m not inviting you back to the podium. [Interjections.]
We will look at Hansard. I do wish to appeal to members. Do not commit violations of the Rules in the House and assume you are going to get away with it. The records will tell us. Honourable ... I wish to ... Because we have said so, we will come back to each one of you who have violated the Rules despite our telling you not to do so. Hon Singh, proceed. [Interjections.] Yes, what are you rising on, hon member?
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Deputy Speaker, I rise on a permanent point of order on hon Makwetla. It is not the first time he does this. He makes Parliament discuss issues and then he comes later to raise a point of order on things that have already happened. There is a specific Rule in the National Assembly Rules that says that a point of order is raised as and when something happens. You can’t relax and think about it later and then think that, no, because someone violated the Constitution or the Rules yesterday, I must now raise a point of order today. That is not how the Rules ... Maybe that justification of him spending R50 000 on alcohol is understandable now! Unless that is the problem!
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Shivambu, take your seat. I do want to remind you that the Rules have been applied in the House. Members have said, please go and look at Hansard. Rule on it. The same principle applies to this thing and that will be done. Hon Singh, proceed.
Source: Unrevised transcript, Hansard.
