South Africa has had some formidable as well as some decidedly unimpressive speakers of parliament since the dawn of democracy in 1994.
Frene Ginwala was speaker from 1994 to 2004. She navigated the post-apartheid law-making process with passion and vigour under presidents Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki, and generally ensured that MPs and ministers were called to account when necessary.
After 2004 and into the Jacob Zuma years, the ANC tended to view both speaker and parliament simply as a rubber stamp. The ANC majority often overshadowed dissenting voices, leading to a climate in which parties such as the EFF expressed profound disdain for the speaker.
Opposition parties came to distrust the role, and at times there was physical confrontation in the chamber when speaker Baleka Mbete (2004-2008, 2014-2019) felt compelled to call parliamentary security officers, who often violently removed EFF MPs.
Thandi Modise was firm and attempted to restore some respectability and decorum to parliament. By contrast, in Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula’s tenure there was a noticeable decline in the quality of debate and accountability.
Matthew Parks, longtime parliamentary watcher for trade union federation Cosatu, tells the FM that Ginwala will be remembered as an effective speaker at a time when the ANC was at its height as a “key transformation site”. He says she “laid a solid foundation” for the democratic parliament.
Parks says Mbete “did well at first” but she struggled, as much of the ANC did, during the Zuma and state capture era. He adds that she acknowledged that she had made significant mistakes and had blindly followed the party line to support a leader who had clearly gone astray. Parks says: “I think, with hindsight, she has shown a sense of humility.” Mapisa-Nqakula’s tenure was lacklustre, to say the least, he says.
In terms of day-to-day running, the speaker is the political head of the National Assembly and presides over the sittings of the house and its internal bodies such as the rules committee and the programming committee. In South Africa’s parliament, following the British tradition, the speaker and deputy speaker have two of the most powerful roles in the institution. The speaker must exercise executive authority, provide strategic direction and ensure the house effectively discharges its constitutional functions.
Until the May 2024 election, all bearers of these offices were from the ANC, and for 30 years the party had a big majority of MPs and could easily pass legislation without any other party’s support.
The speaker’s actions can reinforce or undermine the principles of open discourse and responsible governance.
According to a research brief by Anele Mtwesi for the Helen Suzman Foundation, speakers play a crucial role in ensuring a vibrant and healthy parliamentary democracy. Mtwesi points out that parliamentary democracy in principle entrenches the impartiality of the speaker as a key requirement. Despite not having to relinquish party membership, the speaker must always act and appear impartial.
I think against the background of no single party receiving 50% of the vote, things are looking a lot better than in previous parliaments
— Makashule Gana
This year, with the entry of several new parties into the house, the speaker will be responsible for ensuring that MPs carry out their oversight duties and ensure accountability from the cabinet and government.
The current speaker, Thoko Didiza, is a veteran cabinet minister and was first elected to parliament in 1994. Her deputy is the DA’s Annelie Lotriet, who joined parliament in 2009 and has served as the deputy whip of the DA in the National Assembly.
Dan Mafora, senior researcher for the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution (Casac), tells the FM that Didiza and Lotriet, as experienced parliamentarians, are a “solid team”.
Other parliament watchers agree that Didiza and Lotriet have been a “breath of fresh air” and an improvement on previous speakers. They say both understand the system and inspire confidence.
Lotriet says: “As has been the practice in previous parliaments, the speaker has delegated certain presiding, representative and administrative duties to me as deputy, in line with the rules and orders of the assembly.” She says the new configuration of parliament means a “continuously evolving opposition and the complete reimagining of traditional concepts such as majority party and minority party”.
Lotriet adds that the speaker’s office has been working hard to amend the rules and orders to make provision for the “new normal”, and that plenaries and committee meetings have served as the platforms for these important debates and discussions. “I believe the composition of the seventh parliament has strengthened parliament’s oversight and legislative capabilities, and that we can expect to see more robust oversight over members of the executive in the next few years.”
Accountability was certainly not always in evidence for some opposition parties. One of the most vocal critics has been ActionSA’s Athol Trollip, formerly one of the DA’s leaders. Last year he wrote to the speaker and to deputy president Paul Mashatile, lamenting the lack of response by ministers to questions posed by MPs. “Over 50% remain unanswered. This is a clear disregard for oversight and accountability,” Trollip says.
However, Lotriet tells the FM that the new presiding officers have taken a new approach to oral questions. “Unlike in the past administrations, we allow the minister to decide whether a question is appropriate or not.”
Mafora says Casac wants the speaker to ensure that the deputy president, as the leader of business and government, ensures accountability and gets cabinet members to respond to issues when raised by MPs. “The speaker needs to be proactive and if she receives a report of unanswered questions, she must be able to appeal to the deputy president. Rather than playing a passive role, she can take a proactive approach,” says Mafora.
“I don’t think the committee chairs have reached a point where they have called the speaker’s office in for the lack of response from the deputy president. But we have to watch this issue. The deputy president is the link between parliament and government, and the speaker must see that he toes the line.”
Makashule Gana of Rise Mzansi tells the FM that, importantly, the new speakers have not called the notorious “white shirts”— the parliamentary security detail that was called in to deal with unruly MPs. “Against the background of no single party receiving 50% of the vote, things are looking a lot better than in previous parliaments.”
Gana says he’s been impressed with the management of the important programme meetings, which are chaired by the speaker.
“There were instances when the MK Party and the EFF have tried to weaken the powers of the speaker and the deputy speaker. But there is now an acceptance of their authority, and meetings are smoother,” he adds. “Decorum has returned to parliament.”
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