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‘Baseless allegations’: Parly calls for fact-checking amid National Assembly Speaker’s arrest rumours
Parliament blamed Holomisa and media outlets for not verifying the truth behind the Speaker's arrest.
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA – FEBRUARY 06: Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula during the media briefing on the State of Readiness for SONA 2024 at City Hall on February 06, 2024 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo by Ziyaad Douglas/Gallo Images)
On Friday Parliament called on media houses to verify their facts before publishing any information. This comes in response to rumours circulating about the arrest of the National Assembly Speaker.
Parliament emphasised the importance of accurate reporting and responsible journalism.
In a surprising turn of events, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Nosiviwe Marisa-Nqakula, found herself at the centre of a media storm.
Fabrication
Reports swirled across news outlets, alleging her arrest or voluntary surrender to the police in connection with an ongoing investigation by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
Parliament says these allegations were further exacerbated by X post from United Domestic Movement (UDM) leader Bantu Holomisa, on Friday morning.
“These reports are simply not true and a fabrication by Mr Holomisa, who simply published these untruths without caring to verify the true facts or the harm that it does to the name of others,” the Parliament statement read.
Media accountability
The parliament said it was disheartening to see a lack of rigorous fact-checking by media houses prior to publishing rumour scoops.
“This is a growing trend in South African media and the practice unfortunately not only undermines the rights of the victims of this gossip reporting but makes a mockery of the independence, integrity and professionalism of our media.”
In response to these “baseless allegations”, parliament confirmed that the Speaker was not arrested, but rather at home with her family.
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“We can confirm that the Speaker and her family are at home and that she has had no interaction with the NPA ID since the Search and Seizure operation at her house on Tuesday, the 19th of March 2024. We can also confirm that this morning the speaker has filed papers in court challenging the manner in which the search and seizure warrant was obtained and the operation itself,” parliament defended Mapisa-Nqakula.
Baseless allegations
Furthermore, the speaker asserted her rights by demanding full disclosure of all material information related to the case, including the complete docket. According to parliament Mapisa-Nqakula considers the claims against her as “baseless” allegations.
“In her papers the speaker urges the NPA to provide to her the details of the case against her as this seems to have already been given to the media, subjecting her to a trial by the media, without any means to defend herself against these public allegations.”
READ MORE: Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula hands herself over to police
While preparing to defend herself and protect her reputation from these unwarranted attacks, the speaker has temporarily taken “Special Leave” from her official duties.
According to parliament, her legal team will share any developments in the case to both the public and the media.
