ActionSA applauds committee to oppose Ramaphosa’s interdict bid
The court is expected to hear President Ramaphosa's urgent application in July.
Black News 
ActionSA has welcomed the decision by Parliament’s Section 89 Impeachment Committee to oppose President Cyril Ramaphosa’s application to interdict the committee from carrying out its constitutional responsibilities.
The development follows a letter from ActionSA to the Speaker of the National Assembly and the Chairperson of the committee, urging Parliament to resist any attempt to delay or frustrate the implementation of the Constitutional Court’s judgment on the Phala Phala matter.
President Ramaphosa, last week, launched an urgent application seeking to prevent the committee from proceeding with its work.
ActionSA Parliamentary Caucus Leader Athol Trollip welcomed the committee’s decision.
Trollip says, “We are delighted that this committee took this decision because it means that parliament is taking responsibility for the work of parliament. You can’t have the constitutional court telling parliament that they didn’t do what they should have done because only parliament can protect the constitution and we have to protect our constitution and this is a step in the right direction.”
The committee’s decision follows an urgent legal opinion obtained by Parliament’s Impeachment Committee, which advised that it should oppose the court application while maintaining its independence and impartiality.
The opinion further states that if the committee decides not to oppose the application, it should file an explanatory affidavit to assist the court when the matter is heard in July.
According to the legal opinion, the committee has a constitutional and legal obligation to comply with the Constitutional Court order that referred the Ngcobo Report to it for consideration and possible implementation.
The opinion states that this obligation is binding and reinforced by the rule of law under Section 1(c) of the Constitution. It also notes that the National Assembly’s oversight responsibilities must be fulfilled in line with constitutional requirements.
The legal opinion concludes that the committee’s obligation to continue with the impeachment inquiry is mandated by Section 89 of the Constitution.
The court is expected to hear President Ramaphosa’s urgent application in July.
