Question NW2804 to the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
15 September 2023 - NW2804
Herron, Mr BN to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
(1)What electoral amendments does she intend to introduce (details furnished); (2) what are the reasons that her department has pre-empted the National Dialogue on Coalitions and the work of the Electoral Reform Consultation Panel to be appointed in terms of Section 23 of the Electoral Amendment Act, Act 1 of 2023? NO3219E
Reply:
1. Some of the proposed changes relate to (i) encouraging amendments to the section 12 Notices to change from Mayoral Executive System to a Collective Executive System to create an environment of “political inclusivity”, (ii) professionalising the administration, (iii) limitation on motions of no confidence through the introduction of a ‘2-year’ cooling-off period to force the focus on the functionality of council and service delivery, (iv) creation and publication of coalition agreements, (v) enabling the party with the highest number of seats to be given first preference to form a coalition with clear timeframes, (vi) enabling the party with the highest number of seats to be given first preference for the appoint of the Mayor (as appointed from the EXCO) and (vii) the introduction of a 1% threshold that will require parties to receive at least 1% of the votes casted to qualify for a seat on the municipal council.
2. Note that the department did not pre-empt the National Dialogue, in fact, the department was in the process of hosting a similar type of engagement but decided to halt its plans since government through the Deputy President’s office planned to host a session, albeit from a much broader perspective.
End.