DA announces its new ‘shadow cabinet’

The opposition DA has once again picked a number of its MPs to play the role of shadow ministers and functionaries in the sixth democratic parliament.

Although these titles are informal, they are a tradition in some democracies, including in the UK, to act as a counterpart to the governing party’s choice of state officials at the highest level.

DA leader Mmusi Maimane said they had picked a diverse group of MPs comprising of talented South Africans from all walks of life who would hold national government accountable for the exercise of their powers, while putting forward fresh ideas and credible alternatives to the plans and policies of national government.

“The people of South Africa re-elected the DA as the country’s official opposition in this 6^th parliament, and we do not take this privilege and responsibility for granted. We will work each and every day to ensure that this parliament works for the people. We will do so by committing to:

1. Fulfil our constitutional mandate, in terms of Chapter 4 of the Constitution, to hold every exercise of public power by the National Executive to account. Through motions, oral and written questions, and persistent work in parliamentary committees, we will not allow the ruling party to relegate parliament to a toothless lapdog of the executive;
2. Oppose damaging legislation, regulations and government policy that does not have the best interests of the nation at heart; and
3. Propose credible, workable and implementable alternatives before Parliament, including policy papers, alternative budgets, and Private Members Bills.

“Our work will focus on an Agenda for Reform. The most pressing of these is the need for urgent economic reform. In this light, we will use parliament to table our Jobs Bill and Cheaper Energy Bill, focus on city-led economic growth, fight for labour legislation reform, oppose any changes to the Reserve Bank independence and mandate, propose alternatives to the current state-owned entity ownership framework, propose alternatives to the current Mining Charter, and oppose threats to the economy and fiscus such as the NHI and expropriation of property and land without compensation.”

The full list of MPs in the shadow cabinet can be found below:

The shadow cabinet would officially meet every fortnight to discuss the upcoming legislative agenda; deliberate on new policies, debates, and motions; and table any other matters.

“I am confident that our shadow cabinet possesses the requisite skills, experience and expertise to bring forward innovative alternatives to move our country forward. Comprising of youth and experience, academics and activists, orators and operators – I am proud to lead it,” said Maimane.

(Compiled by Charles Cilliers)

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