Deputy President Paul Mashatile has denied claims by the opposition they wanted to put in a threshold for parties who were contesting for seats in Parliament and provincial legislatures in a bid to throttle smaller parties.
Mashatile said the one percent threshold for parties to go to the legislature was an acceptable way to determine who can go to Parliament.
The African National Congress (ANC) and the Democratic Alliance (DA) have been accused by smaller parties after the National Dialogue in Cape Town in August, led by Mashatile, that they were trying to exclude them from the electoral process by setting up a one percent threshold to qualify for a seat in the national legislature and provincial legislatures.
United Democratic Movement (UDM) Leader Bantu Holomisa raised this question again on Friday during the question and answer session with Mashatile in Parliament.
But Mashatile denied this saying that this was a way to determine who can get a seat in parliament.
“Honourable Holomisa, you will recall that at the dialogue itself, where you also made contributions, this issue was debated, the question of threshold. We explained at the time that was not to throttle smaller parties,” the deputy president said.
“It was really to set up a benchmark that is acceptable in terms of how we do work going forward. I know that General (Holomisa) you were among those who were very sceptical of this threshold. I think at some point (Holomisa) said this is the machination of the ANC and DA to try and throttle us. That is not the case,” said Mashatile.
“When parties go and contest elections they do so to win. I am sure when you campaign you want to win to have a presence that can be felt, when it comes to bodies like this. It shouldn’t be difficult for a party to get more than one percent if you campaign hard. General. we are not using the threshold to exclude you.”
He said the Department of Cooperative Governance has been working on a framework for coalitions.
Deputy Minister of Cooperative Governance Parks Tau told Parliament last week they have developed a Bill to manage coalitions.
Mashatile led the national dialogue at the University of the Western Cape in order to develop a framework for coalitions.
President Cyril Ramaphosa had said they were concerned about the levels of instability in coalition governments across the country and this impacts on service delivery.
Mashatile was tasked with the responsibility of leading discussions on the framework for coalitions.
Mashatile told parliament on Friday that some of the parties have made submissions on the coalition framework.
They want to have a threshold of one percent to be able to determine who goes to either Parliament or provincial legislatures.
“Cogta has been looking at this principle and how we can work together. Thresholds are a method that is acceptable,” he said.
“Even in the Constitution, when we go and campaign whoever is going to serve in Parliament there is a threshold. You don’t invite people with zero percent to Parliament. Thresholds are used to determine the acceptable way who participates,” said Mashatile.
He said once they have finalised this process of consultation on the coalition framework, they will send a report to Parliament.
But Mashatile had said previously that they want this process of the framework on coalitions to be concluded before the elections.
siyabonga.mkhwanazi@inl.co.za
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