Cyril Ramaphosa's Defiant Message To Key Gnu Partner Da

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the Constitution does not permit him to negotiate with, or seek agreement from, political parties prior to signing Bills that have been passed by Parliament.

In recent weeks, some members of the government of national unity GNU have complained that Ramaphosa did not consult them before signing the Expropriation Bill into law.

At a recent media briefing, Democratic Alliance DA federal Council chairperson Helen Zille accused the President of acting unilaterally as if he is not in any coalition.

Speaking at the same briefing, DA leader John Steenhuisen added, There was nothing instructing the President to sign this Bill. There was no urgency on it.

We could have had discussions about it. We could have decided to refer it back to Parliament . We could have amended it, using the GNU's majority in Parliament to come up with a Bill that met all the constitutional requirements."

In his reply to the debate on his State of the Nation Address on Thursday 13 February, Ramaphosa suggested that the DA did not understand the powers and responsibilities of the President when it comes to assenting to legislation passed by Parliament.

The Constitution is very clear: the President must assent to a Bill passed by Parliament unless the President has reservations about its constitutionality, he emphasised.

The Constitution does not permit that the act of assent by the President be subject to negotiation or to the terms of an agreement between parties. The President must ultimately make a determination in line with the Constitution.

The President also took issue with the DAs messaging around ongoing reforms. He insisted that much of the work done in the GNU so far represents continuity from the previous administration and over the past 30 years.

While some speakers have sought to claim the progress that is being made and these reforms as new developments and their own makings, we nevertheless welcome the fact that they have embraced these initiatives and are working to ensure they succeed, he said.