‘Democracy means majority rules’: Mashatile denies ANC is abusing its parliamentary majority

Deputy President Paul Mashatile has denied claims that the African National Congress (ANC) has been using its parliamentary majority to shield President Cyril Ramaphosa from accountability.

Mashatile’s maiden Q&A session

Mashatile appeared in the National Assembly on Thursday afternoon, in the Good Hope Building, Cape Town, for his first oral question session, since Ramaphosa appointed him the country’s deputy president earlier this month.

He replaced his predecessor, David Mabuza, as the leader of government business in Parliament.

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Mashatile was asked a question by Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) MP, Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi, whether the ANC was abusing its majority in Parliament to protect Ramaphosa from scrutiny over the theft of foreign currency at his Phala Phala game farm in Limpopo.

‘There is no shielding’

The deputy president said the EFF was wrong to suggest that the governing party was using its seats in the national legislature to circumvent parliamentary accountability.

He said Ramaphosa had expressed his commitment to cooperate fully with investigations by law enforcement agencies into the 2020 robbery.

“There is no shielding [of the president]. I think sometimes there is a zeal to find the president guilty without going through due process. It’s not correct.

“We are a democracy, we have institutions that we have set up that are independent [and] nobody is interfering with them,” said Mashatile.

His comments come after the ANC used its majority in Parliament late last year, to block the report by the independent Section 89 panel, which recommended that the National Assembly consider instituting impeachment proceedings against Ramaphosa over the Phala Phala matter.

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Most recently, on Wednesday, ANC parliamentarians voted against a Democratic Alliance (DA) motion on the establishment of an ad hoc committee into the alleged involvement of several government departments and entities in the alleged cover-up of the robbery.

Mashatile appealed to opposition parties and South Africans to be patient with investigations being conducted by law enforcement institutions like the Hawks and the Office of the Public Protector.

“The president is cooperating [and] not interfering. I can assure you that the institutions are doing their work without fear or favour,” he said.

‘That’s how democracy works’

In a follow-up question from DA chief whip Siviwe Gwarube, Mashatile said parties should accept that “majority rules” when it comes to governing parties using their parliamentary majority in their favour.

He said this was a global practice saying even the DA in the Western Cape, where it governs the province, used its majority in the provincial legislature.

“I think that’s how democracy works. The majority must have its way,” said Mashatile.

He added: “When the ANC believes that its course is correct, it will use its majority to push those decisions… democracy means majority rules. That’s it.”

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