The Western Cape High Court has dismissed the case brought by 10 uMkhonto weSizwe members of Parliament (MPs) who were challenging their expulsion.
The dismissed MPs had sought an urgent court interdict to prevent the Speaker of Parliament, Thoko Didiza, from swearing in any replacement MPs proposed by the MK Party.
They also wanted to continue receiving MP benefits, including parliamentary accommodation, until the court made a ruling.
This came after, on August 19, they were denied access to parliamentary housing and were given 30 days to vacate the premises.
The court heard that the 10 MPs had resigned from their previous jobs before being part of the National Assembly and had no alternative accommodation for themselves or their families.
They also claimed they received only R12 000 instead of the R102,000 they were expecting on August 15 as monthly salaries for being MPs. This discrepancy in payments was another point of contention.
Jacob Zuma, MK Party leader, opposed the application.
In his affidavit, Zuma explained that an interim leadership core (ILC) had been appointed to manage the party until its first democratic conference.
Zuma detailed that the ILC had granted him the authority to manage the party’s members. This granted him powers to add or remove individuals from any party structure after consulting with the ILC.
Mishandling of party lists
He further revealed that the decision to expel the 10 MPs was based on significant political security concerns. He noted that Thanduxolo Dyodo, the secretary-general and an ILC member, had mishandled the preparation of party lists.
According to the court documents, Zuma claimed that 90% of the names on the list, which included around 800 names on March 8, were unknown to him.
He insisted that he had been misled about the authenticity and credibility of the party lists. This led to Dyodo being dismissed as acting secretary-general, and a case was opened in Sandton, which remains under investigation.
The court also heard that after the MK Party decided to boycott the National Assembly’s first sitting in the seventh administration. Zuma said 12 people, including some of the applicants, were instructed to withdraw from the swearing-in.
Although there were no objections, these individuals continued to attend the ceremony.
When some of those on the list did not show up, they were assumed to have resigned. This included the first and second applicants, Thamsanqa Fortunate Khwuzwayo and Isaac Kaleboe Menyatso, respectively.
Zuma consequently managed their replacement by revising the allegedly flawed lists. The court noted that the applicants were considered resigned, although no formal resignation letters were submitted.
In addition, the court found that the applicants failed to provide adequate details about their MK Party membership and did not clarify when they were informed about their replacements at the National Assembly.
In conclusion, the court dismissed the case with costs.
