Opposition parties are outraged that the Speaker of Alfred Duma Municipality used armed guards to forcibly remove an IFP councillor, and question whether the Speaker broke the law at yesterday morning’s (June 29) council meeting.
Members of the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) were forced out of a full council meeting by armed bodyguards yesterday morning (June 29) at Alfred Duma Local Municipality.
Cllr Lizwilakha Qwabe of the IFP demanded that an item be added on the agenda with regards to job creation and the corruption involved in the Ladysmith area.
When the Speaker refused and asked the councillor to stop badgering him, the councillor continued demanding that the item be addressed.
IFP councillors began chanting in support of Cllr Qwabe.
It can be clearly seen in video footage recorded that council officials (either acting on the instructions of the Speaker or deciding on their own) left the chamber to assemble private and municipal bodyguards tasked with protecting individual councillors. These councillors include the Speaker, Mayor, Deputy Mayor and other high-ranking ANC officials.
The guards, all armed, stormed into the council chamber and forcibly began removing Cllr Qwabe.
Also read: DA STATEMENT RE REMOVAL OF COUNCILLORS FROM A MEETING OF THE ALFRED DUMA COUNCIL
Also read: Watch: Opposition party members forced out of full council meeting by bodyguards in Ladysmith
When IFP and EFF councillors rallied around Qwabe and demanded to know why armed bodyguards were being used to evict him, they themselves were forcibly removed from the chamber.
According to Exco Councillor Abbas Warasally, who is a member of the IFP National Council, the Standing Rules are clear that no firearm or dangerous weapons are allowed to be in the venue of the meeting. He is surprised that the bodyguards barged in with their firearms, even though they did not pull them out or show them to anyone. He also wonders whether it is safe for councillors, officials and ratepayers to attend these meetings anymore.
He says it is the democratic right of opposition parties to question, agree or disagree with the ruling party and that they need to look into the security guard policy and consult with the police.
Cllr Warasally added that what the Speaker has done is totally unjust and they are seeking legal advice whether or not to take legal action against the Speaker. “We will not sit back as puppets and agree with the corruption that is going on in the ruling party; we are not puppets and will not be played with by the ruling party!”
DA Alf Lees MP and Shadow Deputy Minister of Finance stressed that the “Standing Order of Council 41(1)(f) prohibits any councillor from bringing a firearm or dangerous weapon into a council meeting. Clearly, this rule must equally apply to members of the public and to bodyguards.”
He added that “Standing Order of Council 42(4) makes it absolutely clear that the Speaker MUST adjourn a meeting where the misconduct by a councillor or councillors prejudices the proceedings of the council. The council meeting on June 29, 2017, if prejudiced by the conduct of a councillor or councillors, should immediately have been adjourned by the Speaker.”
“The DA will be looking at laying criminal charges,” he added. Read the full DA statement here.
Update: This story has been updated. We are reliably informed that some of the bodyguards are actual municipal employees.
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