Zuma apologised for the violated but said he did not know he was in the wrong. Someone else must be te blame. Meanwhile parliamentary speaker Baleka Mbete‚ said she won’t resign in the wake of the ConCourt’s findings that both Zuma and the National Assembly had violated the constitution with regards to the Nkandla debacle.
She told reporters on Sunday that she would also not consider recusing herself from Tuesday’s debate in Parliament on a motion tabled by the Democratic Alliance calling for Zuma to be impeached.
This infuriated the Democratic Alliance who asked for her resignation calling her media briefing “a complete and utter waste of Parliament and the public’s time”.
The DA’s chief whip, John Steenhuisen said “considering the scathing nature of the judgment against Zuma and Parliament unanimously delivered by the Constitutional Court last week, Ms Mbete missed a prime opportunity to apologise to the nation and step down as Speaker of the National Assembly.
“Instead, she did her best to speak around the fact that by resolving to absolve President Zuma of compliance with the remedial action in Secure in Comfort instead of facilitating its enforcement as was expected by the Public Protector, Thuli Madonsela, the National Assembly breached its obligations under sections 55(2) and 181(3) of the Constitution.”
He said his party agrees that the judgment has provided Parliament much-needed clarity, a procedural foundation for the processing of future reports by Chapter 9 institutions, and will hopefully help restore the institution’s reputation in the process. The DA looks forward to engaging Parliament’s various parties in committee and formalising this process.
“However, it is crucial that Parliament also sends a message to the President and the people of South Africa that his breach of the very Constitution he has sworn an oath to uphold and protect, will not be tolerated – and the best way to do so will be to vote with the DA in Tuesday’s Impeachment Motion, said Steenhuisen.
The chairperson of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP)‚ Thandi Modise‚ said she also would not resign as the NCOP had nothing to do with the matter.
Thursday’s judgment by the Constitutional Court found that Zuma and the National Assembly had failed to uphold the Constitution in their treatment of the Public Protector’s remedial action on the government’s spending at Zuma’s Nkandla homestead. The court ordered that Zuma repay some of the money spent on non-security upgrades at the private home.
