The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) is a house of the representatives of the provinces who are seconded to serve there by the provincial legislatures. That was what the former Chairperson of the NCOP and the former Speaker of the National Assembly (NA), Ms Thandi Modise, told new chairpersons of the select committees of the NCOP and the new provincial whips. She was speaking during a two-day induction programme currently underway in Cape Town organised by the NCOP to orientate the new select committee chairpersons and provincial whips.

Equal power

Ms Modise said the NA and the NCOP are equal houses of Parliament but are distinct in their mandates, which are clearly spelt out in the country's Constitution. She also noted that as the NCOP's work is complicated, the provinces are supposed to deploy experienced delegates to serve there. She said it takes some time for new delegates to become familiar with the workings of the NCOP and permanent NCOP delegates are supposed to be former members of the executive.

Ms Modise said Parliament is a combination of both houses of Parliament, the NA and the NCOP, not one of them above the other. They are equal. Their heads, the Speaker of the NA and the Chairperson of the NCOP, lead Parliament together and they must always consult one another before any decision can be taken. As for legislation, she said the NA and the NCOP deal differently with legislation.

On the administration side of Parliament, which is headed by the Secretary to Parliament (STP), Ms Modise said the STP must always consult the secretaries of the houses.

Ms Modise distinguished between the NCOP Chief Whip and the whip of the majority party in the NA. She said the NCOP Chief Whip is the whip of the house unlike the whip of the party in the NA. She called on the provincial whips to avoid having the delegates of their parties in their minds. "You are provincial whips, and you should be united by your provincial issues not party-political issues. Be driven by a provincial attitude," emphasised Ms Modise. She said a provincial mandate must be agreed by a provincial legislature.

The important relationship between NCOP delegates and their constituents

In addition, she said that among other tasks, Members of Parliament must use parliamentary constituency offices to become platforms of education about Parliament. Members should avoid wearing the regalia of their parties on constituency work as that does not contribute to promoting unity and cohesion in the South African nation. MPs should be a symbol of unity. "Be careful about the language you use and be in order," she emphasised.

She urged chairpersons and whips to understand the rules of the house and the joint rules of Parliament. Limited understanding of the rules renders a delegate unable to participate in the business of the house or of Parliament as a whole. This inadvertently renders representation of the delegate meaningless at Parliament. She also urged them to understand the annual strategic and annual performance plans presented by government departments in Parliament to make it easier to exercise oversight over them.

She urged the chairpersons and the whips to have a better understanding of democracy, one that is not a poverty-stricken version of democracy driven by party political affiliation, race, ethnicity, tribalism, regionalism and so on. An MP must listen to the views of the people irrespective of their party affiliation. She said the delegates must also have a better understanding of what a constituency is. There is a difference between a political party and a constituency, she added. There can be a diversity of political parties, cultures and races in a constituency. "Have a constituency in mind not members of your political party," she reiterated.

Ms Modise said she supports what former President Thabo Mbeki proposed some time ago that the size of the NCOP should be reviewed given its role in the South African system of state.

Role of provincial whips

The former Chief Whip of the NCOP, Mr Seiso Mohai, who is currently the Deputy Minister of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, also participated in the programme on understanding the role and necessity of parliamentary whips in enforcing cohesiveness and discipline in Parliament. He spoke about the role of provincial whips, who are responsible for the following:

• co-ordinating the business of the provincial delegation.

• assisting the Chief Whip in fulfilling his or her duties.

• ensuring a link between the NCOP and provincial legislature.

• coordinating the participation of the provincial delegation in the NCOP processes and proceedings.

• facilitating the briefing of the provincial legislature on legislation or any other matter that is before the Council.

• performing any other function that the Chairperson, the Chief Whip or the Council may assign to him or her.

• Delegated Whips are responsible for transport, processing of leave, housing, resources, questions and motions.

• Housing Whips are responsible for ensuring that MPs are provided with appropriate accommodation.

• Dealing with all complaints relating to the accommodation of members in parliamentary villages and liaising with the House Chairpersons Members Support and the Department of Public Works to address them.

• The NCOP also designates one of the whips to be responsible for overseeing all transport-related arrangements and logistics for MPs within the parliamentary precincts and parliamentary villages

• Ensuring that the transport for Members are on time and that it meets the transportation standards of MPs

• Ensuring that all MPs requiring parking are allocated parking bays and disks at Parliament and in the Parliamentary villages.

Mava Lukani

20 August 2024

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