He said he was backing the call to postpone the proceedings until further notice. “I think all of us in this place, at least if you believe in the Constitution of this country, you know that the police cannot enter this chamber…” He appealed for calm.ĪNC chief whip Stone Sizani said the whips had agreed that there was no possibility that they could rationally talk to each other or listen to each other. #balancemedia /w3XiahCWhNĭA parliamentary leader Mmusi Maimane proposed that the House suspend its session until a later date in light of the events of the evening. If a leader of the ANC had tweeted these tweets would be in all the news. After Mashabela was successfully dragged out, MPs returned to their seats. The sergeant-at-arms, Regina Muhlomi, was called to remove Mashabela, but when she failed a group of parliamentary security personnel could be seen approaching Mashabela, who repeatedly told them “not to touch me”.Īt this point, Parliament cut off its visual feed, and just before the audio was cut off as well, Frolick was heard instructing the Democratic Alliance chief whip, John Steenhuisen, to tell DA MPs to delete pictures and video footage that they were taking of the incident. When instructed to leave the podium and the House, she refused. Everybody in South Africa knows that Zuma is a thief,” she insisted. “The president of the ANC is the greatest thief in the world, I am not going to withdraw. She said this was worrying and asked: “How much will he benefit as he did in the arms deal from this treaty?” The EFF was tired of funding “Zuma the thief, the criminal who refuses to pay a cent ”.ĪNC MP Mandla Mandela, rising on a point of order, objected to Zuma being labeled a thief and asked Frolick to instruct Mashabela to withdraw that comment. She mentioned media reports about Zuma’s role in getting Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila to award business to Zuma’s nephew Khulubuse. “Corruption normally hides under the disguise of such massive projects for the enrichment of politicians and their families,” she said.
In her speech, Mashabela said the EFF was concerned that politicians would use the multibillion-rand project as a vehicle for corruption. After her refusal to withdraw, he ordered her to leave the House.
ANC MP and house chairperson Cedric Frolick, who was presiding over the session, ordered Mashabela to withdraw her comments about Zuma. He is the greatest thief in the world,” said Mashabela. Mashabela was delivering her speech in a debate about the treaty on the Grand Inga Hydropower project. In it, she repeatedly referred to Zuma as a thief. Section 58 of the Constitution prohibits criminal or civil procedures from being brought against MPs for what they say in Parliament, and forbids their arrest in such matters. It is not clear who called the police. The presence of police in the chamber, while the House is in session, is a violation of the Powers, Privileges and Immunities of Parliament and Provincial Legislatures Act, which prohibits the police from being in Parliament unless they have been instructed to be there by the speaker, her deputy or any other of the presiding officers.
A volatile sitting of the National Assembly ended abruptly and in tears, with fists flying as public order police dragged a female Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) MP, Ngwanamakwetle Mashabela, out of the chamber on Thursday night, after she labelled President Jacob Zuma a thief and a criminal during a debate.įour opposition MPs were injured in the scuffle.
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