/ 1 January 2002

ANC to amend constitution to allow defections

The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal indicated on Friday it intended to pressure its national leaders to seek changes to the Constitution as soon as possible to allow floor-crossing at provincial and national level.

This comes after the Constitutional Court ruled that floor-crossing at all levels was not unconstitutional but that legislation drafted to allow defections at provincial and national level was procedurally incorrect.

Analysts believe the judgement leaves the way open for a constitutional amendment to be brought before Parliament.

A two-thirds majority is required to pass such a change, and this could be achieved if the African National Congress was supported by the New National Party.

The NNP has indicated it also wants the constitutional amendments to be process as soon as possible.

If such an amendment was passed, it would allow five members of the KwaZulu-Natal legislature who defected to the ANC earlier this year, to retain their seats and give the ANC a bigger majority in the house than the rival Inkatha Freedom Party.

”We are convinced that something must be done to rectify what has been identified by the Constitutional Court as a procedural hiccup,” ANC KwaZulu-Natal representative Mtholephi Mthimkhulu said.

”The people who crossed the floor did it in a bona fide way because the legislation was in force, so that is why we strongly believe they must be protected,” Mthimkhulu said.

Mthimkhulu said the ANC had not yet decided how to take the matter forward.

”At moment the national leadership has made it clear they are still studying the ruling closely. We (in KwaZulu-Natal) are still putting our heads together on how we are going to do it.”

One of the five defectors, Mike Tarr, is confident that he will keep his ANC seat in the legislature despite the fact that Friday’s ruling does not allow him to carry his seat to the ANC.

”I am not worried at all … I have been told to relax,” said Tarr, who left the IFP in June along with Maurice MacKenzie to join the ANC.

The Democratic Alliance lost two members to the ANC and one United Democratic Movement member defected to the ANC. The IFP in the province, meanwhile, said the court’s ruling had vindicated its opposition to the floor-crossing legislation.

IFP representative Musa Zondi said his party would oppose new efforts by the ANC to reintroduce legislation.

”I really think the ANC would be discrediting themselves if they bring another amendment to parliament… they don’t need it now that the problem of councillors has been resolved.

”Going for it at national and provincial level would be a naked abuse of power,” Zondi said. – Sapa