Mapisa-Nqakula won't partake in Parliament proceedings before elections

CAPE TOWN - National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will not partake in proceedings as the house heads into its final week of business ahead of the elections.

Several bills are set to be approved in a marathon session on Tuesday.

These include money bills tabled by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana in February and a long-awaited intelligence law that will overhaul the State security sector.

Mapisa-Nqakula took special leave last week amid her attempts to challenge an impending arrest over corruption allegations.

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It’s not the way Mapisa-Nqakula would have liked to end her over 30-year career in Parliament.

But the institution said business is unaffected by her absence, with her deputy, Lechesa Tsenoli, at the helm to ensure the last bills are passed by the sixth Parliament.

This includes a bill that will introduce the two-pot retirement system, which from 1 September will make provision for the withdrawal of pension funds while still employed.

Members of Parliament will also be asked to approve a bill that will allow the National Treasury to withdraw R150 billion from the South African Reserve Bank’s Gold and Foreign Exchange Contingency Reserve Account to pay the country’s debt costs.

Just four months since it was introduced, the house will also be asked to approve the so-called “spy bill”, which will de-establish the State Security Agency and establish foreign and domestic intelligence services.