Parliamentary absenteeism: MPs MIA as governance takes backseat

Less than half of members of parliament (MPs) attend portfolio committee meetings, according to a study by the Parliamentary Monitoring Group (PMG).

According to the analysis of committee meeting attendance trends, only 44% of its members participated.

MPs not doing core business of governance

Amanda Gouws from the South African Research Chairs Initiative at Stellenbosch University said the meetings were where legislation and policy were forged and if parties did not attend, they were not doing the core business of governance.

Gouws said MPs are not interested in governing, but only in the limelight and enriching themselves.

“That’s why we do not see decent legislation coming out of parliament because legislation goes from the portfolio committee for discussion to parliament,” Gouws said.

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“That’s also why legislation is being taken to the Constitutional Court all the time.

“This is just shoddy work on the part of parliament to not discipline these committee members.”

Most and least attended portfolio committees

The trade and industry and competition leads with 90% of the most-attended portfolio committees, followed by forestry, fisheries and the environment (82%), women, youth and persons with disabilities (80%) and public service and administration (78%).

The least prolific committee recorded was the rules of the National Assembly committee (44%), international assembly (46%), standing committee on auditor-general (54%), cooperative governance and traditional affairs (55%) and tourism (58%).

Programme manager at the Public Service Accountability Monitor Zukiswa Kota said it was important for MPs to attend committee meetings that were related to decision-making about particular service delivery issues, as many of the issues touched people’s daily lives.

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Each committee responsible for engaging in a particular portfolio of government needs to understand its role, she said.

“For example, we know in Gauteng there are water outages. Those committee members have the powers to summon a minister to provide explanations.

“When that is not happening, that department will continue with poor performance. If parliamentarians are not meeting to do their work and push for those questions, then ministers are failing in their jobs,” Kota said.

Attendance from 2019 to 2024

The data showed party portfolio committee attendance from 2019 to 2024.

The ANC has attended about 76% of the committee meeting, the DA about 80% and the EFF being the lowest, compared to the two, at 63%.

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