The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has criticized members of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Government of National Unity (GNU) Cabinet for allegedly lacking executive accountability, claiming they have failed to adequately respond to parliamentary questions.
Julius Malema’s party said Cabinet ministers had failed to respond to half of the questions within the stipulated time. In some instances, they did not even bother entertaining written questions from Members of Parliament.
In a statement released on Tuesday, November 05th, the EFF accused GNU Ministers of demonstrating an “I don’t care” attitude toward parliamentary duties and disregarding their constitutional obligations.
“They never wanted an accountable government; they simply craved executive power,” the statement read.
The party emphasised that Parliament holds constitutional authority to oversee and hold the Government officials accountable. One mechanism to ensure this accountability is through regular questions submitted by Members of Parliament (MPs) for written and oral replies. Ministers are required to respond to written questions within 10 working days, while oral questions are addressed in quarterly parliamentary sessions.
According to the EFF’s statement, there have been a total of 1,269 questions submitted for written replies since the start of the 7th Parliament. Of these, 593 responses were delayed beyond the 10-day deadline, and 129 questions remain unanswered.
These include questions submitted to Democratic Alliance (DA) Leader and Minister of Agriculture, John Steenhuisen, Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube, Minister of Police Senzo Mchunu, Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean Macpherson, Minister of Defense and Military Veterans Angie Motshekga, Minister of Higher Education and Training Nobuhle Nkabane, Minister of Social Development Sisi Tolashe, and Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Solly Malatsi who replied “very late” to the questions.
The GNU is a grand coalition formed between the African National Congress (ANC), the Democratic Alliance (DA), and other smaller political parties. The coalition was established in June 2024 after the ANC experienced a significant drop in voter support, securing just over 40% of the vote.
In October, the GNU faced controversy when Steenhuisen publicly distanced himself and his party from remarks made by Ramaphosa, who had described Russian President Vladimir Putin as a valuable ally of South Africa. Steenhuisen’s response drew widespread criticism within South Africa, with numerous citizens calling on Ramaphosa to dismiss him from government.
The EFF called on Ramaphosa to take decisive action against Ministers who have neglected their accountability responsibilities.
“The EFF takes the dereliction of duty by these members of the executive very seriously, and we applaud the action of Parliament in having this brought to the attention of the Leader of Government Business.” the statement read. “There must, therefore, be consequences for this neglect of duty, and the President must remove Ministers who do not take their accountability responsibilities seriously.”
