This morning, my colleague and I on the Portfolio Committee on Economic Development walked out of deliberations on the controversial Competition Amendment Bill.
This followed an egregious display of Stalinist chairing by the committee chair, Ms. Elsie Mmathulare Coleman, who tried to prevent us from posing questions to Economic Development Minister, Ebrahim Patel.
The draft Competition Amendment Bill, which was tabled in Parliament on 11 July, is being railroaded through the committee without proper interrogation. Only two days were set aside – during the parliamentary recess, moreover, to work clause-by-clause through a technically complex piece of legislation that could have far-reaching consequences. Unfortunately, several members of the committee could not be present on that occasion.
When the opportunity arose today to engage the Minister on the substance of the bill, Ms. Coleman intervened to close down discussion.
Her conduct was shortsighted and authoritarian and unbecoming of her status as the committee chairperson.
If it is enacted in its current form, the Competition Amendment Bill could increase the cost of doing business, deter foreign investors and kill jobs. With almost 10 million people unemployed in South Africa, Parliament needs to process the legislation carefully and thoughtfully, not rubber-stamp it with unseemly haste so that the ANC can crow before its constituency about ‘making the economy more inclusive’ ahead of the 2019 election.
It is unfortunate that Ms. Coleman seems to be more concerned with her re-election prospects than doing justice to a key piece of legislation which could compromise the ability of business and our country to create much-needed employment.