Charles Molele
Parliament’s presiding officers said on Tuesday they had ‘appropriate’ mechanisms to deal with any potential disruptions of the State of the Nation Address.
This after threats by Economic Freedom Fighters on Sunday claiming President Cyril Ramaphosa would not be allowed to address the nation unless he fired the Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan.
EFF accuses Gordhan of conducting a reign of terror at state-owned companies by targeting black CEOs and acting as a ‘lapdog’ of white monopoly capital.
“Existing joint rules of Parliament sufficiently protect sittings of the Houses and committees from disorder,” said president officers in a statement.
“Open threats to disrupt the work of Parliament, including the propagation of conspiracy theories, are not in the interests of the public. They serve only as attempts to distract Parliament from its work. Parties or Members of Parliament with evidence of any alleged plot to unlawfully use police in the Chamber during SONA are advised to submit it to the Presiding Officers.”
Presiding Officers said they were looking forward to a successful SONA and were pleased with the state of readiness for this important occasion, as they prepare to host more than 2 000 invited guests on Thursday.