Parliament warned not to rush Coalitions Bill public participation process

The Municipal Structures Amendment Bill, also known as the Coalitions Bill, received a caution from Parliament on Thursday. The bill's public-participation process was questioned as lawmakers were advised not to rush the timeline. Senior parliamentary legal advisor Charmaine van der Merwe briefed the Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Portfolio Committee on the bill.

She emphasized that while Parliament has discretion in conducting public participation, there are numerous requirements to be adhered to. Van der Merwe highlighted the importance of considering the nature and significance of the legislation, its impact, time constraints, and efficiency in the lawmaking process. She stressed that even if the bill is politically urgent, the timelines should not be reduced as courts have warned against it.

The Cogta committee was informed about the bill for the first time since its introduction last week after receiving certification from the State Law Advisor and approval from Cabinet. Despite the bill's design to provide a regulatory framework for coalition governments and address issues related to coalitions in local governance, questions arose about whether Parliament could ensure meaningful public participation before the upcoming local government elections on November 4.

The bill, potentially classified as a section 76 bill, typically takes between 24 to 30 months to complete, depending on its nature, public interest, number of amendments, and complexity of amendments. Van der Merwe warned of potential challenges such as scheduling committee meetings and constraints of support staff. The bill aims to limit the motion of no confidence against key local government officials to one per year, provide for elections by a show of hands or secret ballot, and set timelines for the formation of a council, election of office-bearers, and establishment of a Municipal Public Accounts Committee within 12 months after elections.

However, committee chairperson Zweli Mkhize noted that the upcoming constituency period would make it impossible for the committee to engage for four weeks starting from August 31 until September 18.