The African National Congress in Parliament on Wednesday rejected claims it was ”soft” on Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and said her failure to attend a hearing of the ethics committee would be reported to the party’s national leadership for action.
ANC Chief Whip Nathi Nhleko said it would first be necessary to establish why the ANC Women’s League president had not been present at Wednesday’s meeting.
Over and above the ethics committee process, the ANC would also have to deal with the matter ”organisationally”.
”We need to …clarify certain points as to why she couldn’t make it. We have to refer the matter and report what actually transpired to the national leadership to look into the matter and take a decision.”
Nhleko said it would be premature to reflect on what the ANC leadership was likely to do.
”We will report the whole picture …so (that) when they apply their minds to this issue they have the relevant facts at their disposal.”
Nhleko rejected suggestions that Madikizela-Mandela was an ”untouchable” and said the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) had taken a decision to deal with problems relating to the MP.
”She is not an untouchable. The NEC standing decision says that the national leadership must meet Winnie and deal with the issues, including her non-attendance of Parliament.
”The national executive committee of the ANC will take a decision on the basis of the national leadership feeding back and will then take the matter forward from there. So it is not true that the ANC is not doing anything at all.”
Nhleko said the internal ANC process should not be confused with the responsibilities and functions of Parliament’s ethics committee, which had its own particular rules.
On the question of discipline within the ANC caucus, he said a decision had been taken to develop a system of fines for absenteeism from Parliament.
”Overall we are tying to look at the entire question of how we enforce disciplinary measures …In the next six weeks we will make the necessary announcements.”
Madikizela-Mandela who earns more than R300 000 a year as an MP is among those MPs who are hardly ever seen in Parliament.
Madikizela-Mandela’s office said earlier on Wednesday she had not snubbed her peers as she believed her lawyer had communicated with the ethics committee.
”Mrs Madikizela-Mandela was under the impression that the ethics committee had received a letter from her lawyer. She is at a service for Peter Mokaba.”
Mokaba, an ANC MP, died of pneumonia at the weekend.
Madikizela-Mandela was expected to appear before a seven-member panel of the committee to answer claims that she received donations of R50 000 a month and had not disclosed these in the register of members’ interests.
Madikizela-Mandela had asked for a postponement last month and was given June 12 as the new date.
Committee chairman Luwellyn Landers would not say whether she had apologised or again asked for a postponement.
However, Sapa has established there was none.
She would have another chance to appear, Landers said.
The committee had the power to subpoena her if necessary although it was not ”anxious” to do that, he said.
Should Madikizela-Mandela fail to appear again, the panel would report to the full committee which would take any decision it deemed fit, he said.
The National Assembly could decide on an appropriate action.
However, Landers acknowledged that current legislation did not allow for an MP to be suspended from the Assembly.
Wednesday’s meeting which went on without Madikizela-Mandela was held behind closed doors and two policemen were posted to ensure that the media did not gain access to the in-camera proceedings.
The seven-member panel included Landers (ANC), his deputy Lawrence Mushwana (ANC), Motlalepula Chabaku (ANC), Errol Moorcroft (DA), Piet Matthee (NNP), Sybil Seaton (IFP) and Cassie Aucamp (AEB).
Meanwhile, IFP MP Mandla Msomi, who is accused of failing to disclose substantial discounts on two luxury vehicles bought from Eads, a company with an interest in the now notorious government arms deal — is scheduled to appear before the panel on Thursday afternoon.
He is expected to be represented by his chief whip Koos van der Merwe. – Sapa