Cape Town - Parliament has set into motion the process by portfolio committees to tackle recommendations made by the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture that fall within their areas of oversight.
In his report, Chief Justice Raymond Zondo made several recommendations related to the running of the affairs of Parliament.
These included capacitating portfolio committees and dealing with late submissions by the executive and their non-attendance of committee meetings.
Zondo had also recommended that there should be consideration of more opposition parties to chair portfolio committees; the establishment of an oversight committee for the presidency and a constituency; and proportional-based electoral system that will enable MPs to hold the executive accountable.
Speaking at the joint standing committee on intelligence, ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina said: “We must treat the State Capture report like we do about budget votes because (if) we do not do that the committees might proceed doing their normal oversight in terms of their mandate and not integrate the State Capture report.
“As Parliament, let us try to ensure our committees deal with State Capture reports so that when we end this term we should be done with matters referred to us,” she said.
Parliament’s chairperson of committees, Cedric Frolick said a workshop was held with chairpersons of committees from both Houses of Parliament.
“There were numerous inputs around state capture and guidance on what was referred to them. In the next committee meeting, there will be a detailed response,” he said.
Frolick also said the chairpersons of committees have been requested to include in their quarterly programmes, state capture-related matters referred to them for consideration.
“Those programmes are being received and a comprehensive report is going to be brought to the committee,” he added.
Meanwhile, National Assembly Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, will follow up with the Presidency on the delays in the vetting process of members appointed to serve on the joint standing committee on intelligence.
This, after Majodina made the request when the National Assembly programme committee held its meeting on Thursday.
The request comes after it was recently reported that DA MP Natasha Mazzone has yet to attend a meeting of the joint standing committee on intelligence since her deployment last year, pending her security clearance.
Cape Times