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S. African parliament speaker to consider requests for no-confidence motion against Zuma

Xinhua, April 2, 2017 Adjust font size:

South African Parliament Speaker Baleka Mbete said Sunday she will ensure that requests for a no confidence motion against President Jacob Zuma be given appropriate consideration.

Mbete arrived in South Africa on Sunday after cutting short her trip to Bangladesh, citing recent requests for a debate on a no-confidence motion against Zuma as the reason.

On March 30, Mbete's office received a letter from the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) requesting for a motion of no confidence in Zuma.

The letter indicated that the motion be scheduled when Parliament reconvenes. Later on the same day, a similar request was received from the Leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) for the National Assembly to be convened for a special sitting to debate and vote on a similar motion.

The opposition has approached the Western Cape High Court to compel Parliament to urgently schedule a motion of no confidence in Zuma, who has been under fire for drastically reshuffling the cabinet in the early hours of Saturday.

The reshuffle, which affected 10 ministers and 10 deputy ministers, including former Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, has drawn criticism and prompted calls for Zuma to step down.

When a motion of this magnitude is called and is in line with the Parliament's rules, it must be scheduled and must receive priority, Mbete said in a statement.

"I will, therefore, as of today, begin a process of consultation contemplated in the Rules in the consideration of the requests submitted. I envisage that the consultation should be concluded as soon as possible," said Mbete.

She said that once the consultation process is concluded, her office will duly write to all the parties involved to advise them of the outcome.

For a vote of no-confidence motion to be successful, it requires 201 of the 400 National Assembly MPs to vote in its favor.

If the motion is successful, then the president, his deputy, cabinet ministers and all their deputies must resign as provided for in section 102 of the Constitution.

Zuma has survived at least two no-confidence motions in Parliament, dominated by MPs of the ruling African National Congress. Endit