10 August 2021 1 Min Read
ANC formally tips Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula for top job in parliament
Mapisa-Nqakula was fired as defence minister last week after the government responded slowly to violent riots
in National by Hajra Omarjee
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The governing ANC wants Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula as speaker of parliament. The party’s parliamentary caucus made the decision at a meeting on Tuesday morning.
Mapisa-Nqakula was fired as defence minister last week after the government was tardy in responding to violent riots that claimed more than 300 lives and razed thousands of businesses.
Parliament is currently busy with an investigation into the unrest. Constitutionally, it is supposed to have oversight over the national executive.
No date has yet been set for the parliamentary sitting to decide on speaker, after Thandi Modise resigned to take up her appointment to the cabinet. The ANC has 230 seats in Parliament compared to the DA’s 84 and the EFF 44.