Thandi Modise confirms Ramaphosa is intervening in North West

National Council of Provinces (NCOP) chairwoman Thandi Modise has confirmed that she received a letter on Friday from President Cyril Ramaphosa notifying the House of cabinet’s decision to invoke section 100 (1) of the Constitution to address the problems in the North West.

The Constitution states that, when a province cannot or does not fulfil an executive obligation in terms of the Constitution or legislation, the national executive may intervene by taking any appropriate steps to ensure fulfillment of that obligation, parliament’s spokesman Moloto Mothapo said on Sunday.

Modise would table Ramaphosa’s letter through Parliament’s official announcements, tablings, and committee reports (ATC) document for the attention of Members of Parliament during this week.

The matter would follow an ordinary course of parliamentary procedure, which included it being referred to a committee or committees of the House for processing.

“As enjoined by the Constitution, the National Council of Provinces must independently conduct its own assessment that the national executive observed all procedures and circumstances for the intervention and must make a determination within 180 days,” Mothapo said.

Earlier, the Sunday Times reported that government had taken control of the North West, the first time the national government has taken over an entire provincial administration. At the same time, two-thirds of the province’s municipalities were being taken over by the co-operative governance and traditional affairs department.

“The moves are a dramatic intervention by Ramaphosa against North West premier Supra Mahumapelo, who reneged on a public undertaking to step down this week and instead took a leave of absence without presidential approval,” the newspaper reported.

“Ramaphosa has written to the National Council of Provinces informing it that he is placing the entire North West government under the control of the national executive in terms of section 100 (1) of  the Constitution. Senior ANC and government sources said Ramaphosa took the decision on Wednesday after the cabinet was briefed by an interministerial committee on the troubled province,” the Sunday Times reported.

– African News Agency (ANA)