News: EFF MPs issue, Eskom take centre stage in parliament

EFF Chief Whip Floyd Shivhambu says he is confident that the party's MPs will not be suspended.(CPN)

The Powers and Privileges Committee report recommending sanctions against 20 EFF MPs and the current crisis at Eskom will be debated in the National Assembly on Thursday.

This after the National Assembly's Programme Committee agreed on what should be placed on the programme for Thursday's sitting.

The Assembly is reconvening after Speaker Baleka Mbete called MPs back to conclude the business of the Assembly before Parliament goes into recess.

The Programme Committee met on Wednesday afternoon and started with an intense debate on whether President Jacob Zuma should appear during Thursday's sitting. EFF Chief Whip Floyd Shivhambu who was adamant that the president should answer questions was at loggerheads with Programme Committee Chairperson and Speaker Baleka Mbete over the issue.

He says the President will have to answer questions at some point in time. "Bring the President to answer questions there, because if he does not answer questions, the next time he comes here he is going to answer questions, whether he likes it or not, whether it's state of the Nation Address, whatever gathering it is, if he is going to appear before members of Parliament he is going to answer questions," he asserted.

The Programme Committee ultimately agreed on a number of items to be scheduled for debate. The Proceedings will start with a snap debate on Eskom after Public Enterprise Minister Lynne Brown made the request to the Speaker.

The Minister said that "I don't see the reason why we shouldn't agree to have a snap debate on the issues affecting Eskom".

We are going to be here on the 12 of February when parliament opens

Following the snap debates on Eskom, a second and full debate will be held on the Powers and Privileges Committee report dealing with the fate of the 20 affected EFF MPs who have been found guilty of various charges for contempt of parliament.

Shivhambu brushed off the case, saying, "Don't worry about them. We are not going to be suspended, we are going to be here on the 12 of February when parliament opens".

The tabling of motions will also be allowed during the proceedings where each party will submit three motions. The limitation of motions follow consensus reached in the multi-party chief whips forum, which the EFF did not attend.

The programme committee also agreed that other outstanding reports will be considered during the sitting. The business of today will conclude with farewell speeches by Members of Parliament, who will have an opportunity to say goodbye to one another until they meet again in the new year.

Meanwhile, Mbete has reassured the Programme Committee that she will continue to engage President Zuma to get a date of when he would appear to answer oral questions in the house.