National Assembly must draw up impeachment rules without delay: Fedusa

The court found the National Assembly failed to hold President Jacob Zuma to account. 

This relates to an earlier judgment in the highest court in the land, which found that the president failed to uphold and respect the constitution in relation to the Nkandla scandal.

"Fedusa agrees that the National Assembly must comply with section 237 of the Constitution and make rules referred to in paragraph 2 without delay," says the union's general secretary, Dennis George.

"The Federation supports the view that failure by the National Assembly to determine whether the President has breached section 89(1)(a) or (b) of the Constitution  is inconsistent with this section and section 42(3) of the Constitution, and the National Assembly must comply without delay."

The union says it disagrees with Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng, who described the majority judgement as "a textbook case of judicial overreach".

Mogoeng believes the judgement is "a constitutionally impermissable intrusion by the judiciary into the exclusive domain of parliament".

"The Federation calls on the Speaker of the National Assembly as the first respondent in this matter to establish a Committee to draft the rules on impeachment and to invite the public to participate in the process. Secondly, it is important that a separate process be initiated to determine whether the President breached section 89(1)(a) or (b) of the Constitution," says George.