Minister of Communications Solly Malatsi (Instagram)
Another unity government row over a controversial bill has subsided after ministers acknowledged that Communications Minister Solly Malatsi's unilateral withdrawal of the SABC bill last month was not malicious.
Cabinet Spokesperson and Presidential Cabinet Secretary Khumbudzo Nshabeni said Vice President Paul Mashatile had sent a letter to parliament effectively rejecting Malatsi's attempt to withdraw.
“This bill is an executive bill, and the Vice President wrote to the Speaker indicating that the bill has not been withdrawn, and Mr. Malatsi was advised that if he wanted to withdraw the bill, he would need to submit it.”
It added: “Cabinet acknowledged there was no malicious intent on Mr Malatsi's part. This is part of standard procedure and the new minister is still learning.”
Mr Malatsi received a public lashing from Mr Ntshebeni two weeks ago after he withdrew the bill before its second reading in parliament.
“This is not a private member's bill. This is not Minister Malatsi's bill. This is a cabinet bill. When it comes to legislation, you cannot withdraw a bill without going to the cabinet and getting approval,” Ntshabheni said. said at the time. “We are very clear. The rules and laws are very clear.”
Mr Malatsi's measures also drew the ire of the ANC caucus and his predecessor, contemporary MP Mondli Gungubele, who introduced the bill in parliament.
A few days earlier, the minister had written to Speaker Thoko Didisa saying the bill had “several deficiencies” over issues related to financial sustainability, editorial independence and political interference for public broadcasters. , said it had been the subject of “a lot of criticism” from a variety of stakeholders.
“After careful consideration of stakeholder and public comments on the Bill, as well as consultation with key stakeholders in the media and civil society, it is clear that the Bill is flawed and must be withdrawn. ” Marazzi wrote.
“Rather than trying to fix a fundamentally flawed bill, this withdrawal will allow my department to focus on developing a sustainable robotic funding model for the…SABC.”
The ANC and the Democratic Alliance are still at odds over the Basic Education Law Amendment (Bera) Act.
President Cyril Ramaphosa signed it on September 13, but delayed its implementation for three months to allow the parties to continue to discuss contentious provisions on language policy and the autonomy of school governing bodies.
Last week, Mashatil accused Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwalbe of maliciously signing an agreement with trade union Solidarity to end the dispute he declared in Nedlac over sections 4 and 5 of the law.
Mr Gwalbe and Mr Ramaphosa were named as defendants in the dispute, and the agreement was co-signed by Mazietsi Mekoa, deputy director-general for enterprise management in the Office of the President.
In a statement issued after the signing, Gwalbe stressed that the agreement “in no way replaces the ongoing consultations” between the Cabinet Clearinghouse coalition partners on the bill.
“We call on all parties who signed the Letter of Intent to uphold their integrity and cooperate with the formal process. The Vera Act, like any law, is a product of Congress and the President,” Mashatil said. Therefore, no intervention can underestimate the centrality of those who play these important roles.
On Thursday, Nshabeni said she, the president and the vice president had not been informed of the agreement with Solidarity. A report on the issue is being prepared, she added.
Two senior ANC officials in government this week, first Mr Mashatile and then Mr Ramaphosa, reprimanded Mr Gwalbe in a statement the following day, even though officials in the Presidency co-signed the agreement and the minister revealed it. He privately expressed surprise at the decision to do so. It did not replace clearinghouse processes.
