EFF confirms withdrawal of bill to relocate parliament

The EFF has confirmed the withdrawal of its proposed bill calling for the relocation of parliament from Cape Town to Tshwane.

The party announced on Tuesday this was a tactical move and the Relocation of the Seat of Parliament Bill was likely to be reintroduced after the 2024 general elections.

The withdrawal of the bill was announced in the National Assembly’s programming committee last Thursday, but no reasons were given.

The EFF said it has officially written to National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula to inform her of the decision to withdraw the bill introduced by party leader Julius Malema in November last year.

The party said the bill was intended to address historical irrational decisions made by colonial settlers in their attempt to unify colonial and settler provinces.

“These decisions were made with the complete and discriminatory exclusion of black people. As a result, parliament is inaccessible to most South Africans today.

“Furthermore, the bill aimed to save taxpayers money [as] billions of rands are spent on travel, accommodation and subsistence allowances for MPs, ministers and government and state officials between the administrative and legislative cities.”

The expenditure persists to uphold colonial agreements made by racist colonisers that separated the administrative and legislative capitals into two cities, said the party.

“We have tactically withdrawn the bill for long-term strategic purposes, which include gaining control of political power,” said the EFF.

It said the bill was informed by its founding manifesto, which proposes only one city should serve as both the administrative and legislative capital of the country.  

The bill was roundly rejected during a parliamentary debate in June with a number of parties citing the high costs of relocating.

The ANC's Hope Papo said at the time relocating parliament was not a priority for the country and the party did not support it.

A study by Pamoja Asset Management, commissioned by parliament in 2018 and released last year, estimated it would cost R8.4bn over five years to build a new parliamentary complex in Pretoria and relocate the legislature’s more than 1,000 employees from Cape Town — but this would offset the cost of regular renovations and maintenance of the current precinct, which came in at R4.2bn over four years.

The study also found the cost of shuttling ministers and their support staff between the two cities would be cut by R183m a year.

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