The Democratic Alliance (DA) has introduced the Constitution 24th Amendment Bill to block impeached judges and heads of Chapter 9 bodies from becoming members of our national, provincial legislatures or local councils.
The Bill seeks to amend sections 47, 106 and 158 of the Constitution to ensure that any former judge or Chapter 9 head removed by the President on grounds of misconduct or gross misconduct respectively are ineligible to become members in Parliament, provincial legislatures and local councils.
This DA bill is a strong step toward bolstering public trust in Parliament and increasing the legislature’s ability to hold other arms of government accountable.
The people of South Africa deserve representatives that embody honesty and integrity, and block impeached persons of reprehensible character from getting a seat in Parliament. Those who do not follow the law cannot be trusted to uphold it and the DA’s bill closes this gap in the Constitution.
We call on political parties to support this great Bill. Those who do not are clearly in favour of tarnishing Parliament’s reputation.