Didiza: Parliament is fulfilling its duties amid impeachment tensions

Speaker rejects concerns as committee tensions rise over alleged meetings

National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza has said there is nothing to worry about as Parliament discharges its responsibilities, amid growing tensions in the Impeachment Committee over reports she may have met President Cyril Ramaphosa’s legal advisers.

What sparked the dispute

The controversy began when Democratic Alliance parliamentary leader George Michalakis asked whether Didiza had sought a legal opinion from parliamentary legal services about proceeding with Ramaphosa’s review application. Michalakis said there were widespread reports that Didiza met with the president’s legal advisers and argued that, if true, that could “taint the whole process” and potentially require her to recuse herself to protect the integrity of the proceedings.

Responses in the subcommittee

State law adviser Andrew Breytenbach told the Subcommittee on the Review of Assembly Rules that questions about whether Didiza took an opinion or met the president’s legal team were matters he could not answer and should be directed to the Speaker:

“I have no information about that. So that, with respect, is a matter to be taken up with the Speaker,”

ANC MP Mikateko Mahlaule said the Constitutional Court judgment had directed Didiza to take specific steps, including releasing the Independent Panel report and referring it to the Rules Committee for processing. Mahlaule argued it was disingenuous to focus on the Speaker’s impartiality when Parliament’s task was to implement the court order.

MK Party MP Mzwanele Manyi said he shared some of Michalakis’s anxiety and warned that the implications could be serious if the allegations were true.

Michalakis says he has written proof

Michalakis told the committee he had written to Didiza and that she did not deny meeting Ramaphosa’s legal advisers. He said Didiza had responded that the meeting was in the execution of her Constitutional Court obligations and that he would provide the committee with the letters and seek a response from parliamentary legal advisors on the legal principle.

Didiza’s position and next steps

Didiza told journalists on Friday that she has complied with the court judgment, Iol reported. She said she did not believe there was anything that should make people worry about Parliament fulfilling its role.

“I don’t think, therefore, there is anything that should make anybody worry about Parliament’s responsibility in discharging its role,”

Didiza also noted the Constitutional Court’s findings about Parliament’s processes. The court found parliamentary Rule 129I to be unconstitutional and set it aside, and the court indicated Parliament should not have sent the panel’s report directly to the House. Instead, it ordered the process to go to the Impeachment Committee, which Parliament is carrying out.

Didiza further said they await Ramaphosa’s court application and they would take it from there in terms of seeking legal advice and respond to it, Iol reported.

What this means for the impeachment process

• Parliament is acting to implement the Constitutional Court judgment by moving the Independent Panel report to the Impeachment Committee.
• Allegations about the Speaker’s contacts with the president’s legal team have heightened scrutiny and prompted calls for legal clarity from parliamentary advisers.
• Key committee figures have signalled they will seek documentation and legal opinion to determine whether procedural or impartiality concerns affect the process.

The matter remains live in parliamentary committees as members await further legal input and any court applications related to President Ramaphosa’s review.