BARNEY MTHOMBOTHI: Parliament needs a new Speaker to lead it out of chaos
'Mbete and Lechesa Tsenoli, her bumbling deputy, should be put out to pasture. They represent the old guard'
EXTRACT
The mess in parliament lies squarely at the door of the ANC. The EFF is merely taking advantage of the shambles.
Parliament's primary responsibility is to hold the executive accountable. But in its desperate effort to protect Zuma, the governing party reduced parliament to yet another of its tools, to do its bidding. In other words, parliament became accountable to it. Baleka Mbete, the party's chairwoman, became speaker with a clear mandate to protect Zuma. Parliament therefore lost all credibility. People now watch its proceedings not to learn or to follow debates about issues that are central to their lives, but to be amused and entertained. It's something to joke about.
Watching the awful scenes during President Cyril Ramaphosa's budget speech in Parliament this week, one was left wondering whether the institution can ever play its role to unite the country, which is so essential if South Africa is to have a brighter future. The racist hatred spewed by the EFF members, which has almost become their standard fare, should have no place in the people's house. Even more concerning is that the vitriol earned no punishment or condemnation from the chair. Parliament is a sacred place. It is a repository of people's aspirations, their dreams and democratic ideals. Too many sacrifices were made to get us there. One shouldn't go to parliament to holler and swear and make a fool of oneself, just as one should not descend on a church, a mosque or a synagogue to swear at the deity.Jacob Zuma has ripped through parliament like a hurricane, leaving its occupants seemingly confused and disoriented. Not everybody, it seems, is pleased to see the back of him. The EF...
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