Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma was the most prominent ANC MP absent as parliament voted for the removal of public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane.
Also missing in action was EFF leader Julius Malema who was appearing at the East London magistrate’s court for charges of firing a firearm in public.
It is not clear why Dlamini-Zuma and another ANC national executive committee member, Phumulo Masualle, were missing in actions, as all present ANC MPs stuck to the party line to vote MMkhwebane out of office.
ANC chief whip in the National Assembly Pemmy Majodina said it is not clear why Dlamini-Zuma failed to show up for Monday’s session.
She said she will be writing to ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula’s office to recommend that action be taken against Dlamini-Zuma.
“It is high time that the ANC acts on her, it’s enough now,” said Majodina.
Of the 362 MPs that attended the session on Monday, 318 voted for the motion that Mkhwebane must fall while 43 MPs were against the move.
Cope leader Mosiuoa Lekota abstained.
There was little drama in the Cope benches because while Lekota chose to seat on the fence, another Cope MP Loate Teboho voted in favour of Mkhwebane’s removal.
This meant that the two-thirds majority required to remove a Chapter 9 institution head was reached with ease.
Only seven ANC MPs did not attend the sitting despite party secretary-general Fikile Mbalula’s stern warning before the vote that only death should prevent party MPs from attending the session.
Five DA MPs missed the vote while eight EFF members were nowhere to be found.
The majority of IFP MPs were also absent owing to the passing of the party’s president emeritus Mangosuthu Buthelezi.
Buthelezi died early on Saturday morning after he was discharged from hospital last week.
Mkhwebane will now be headed to court to challenge her removal. Supporting her is the EFF, which previously stated that it will also approach the courts of law.
This while the ANC and DA pop the champagne that their first major collaboration in parliament yielded intended results.
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