Latest news with #GlynnisBreytenbach
IOL News
07-08-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Bill proposes barring impeached individuals from becoming public representatives
The DA's Glynnis Breytenbach says the party's private member's bill seeks to remove the gap in the law that allows impeached judges and Chapter 9 heads from being members of Parliament, provincial legislatures and councils. Image: File Picture: Phill Magakoe/Independent Newspapers If the DA could have its way, the Constitution should be amended to bar impeached judges and heads of Chapter 9 Institutions to stand for election as MPs, councillors and Members of Provincial Legislatures. The party's MP Glynnis Breytenbach has published a notice of intention to introduce a private members bill and invitation for comment on the draft bill. The bill comes in the wake of former judge John Hlophe and former public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane being elected as MPs for the MK Party and EFF respectively after they were impeached over the past few years. Breytenbach said her party seeks to remove the gap in the law that allows impeached judges and Chapter 9 heads from being members of Parliament, provincial legislatures and councils. 'The bill will ensure that any judge or person appointed in terms of Chapter 9 of the Constitution that has been removed from office due to misconduct, is disqualified from becoming a Member of Parliament (MP), provincial legislature of municipal council. 'Allowing such individuals to become MPs brings the institution into disrepute and erodes public confidence in Parliament's ability to hold the executive and the judiciary accountable,' she said. Breytenbach also said South Africans deserved representatives that embody honesty and integrity, and allowing that category of persons found guilty of misconduct to become MPs was a slap in the face of honest, law-abiding South Africans. 'The bill will be a strong step toward bolstering public trust in Parliament and increasing the legislature's ability to hold other arms of government accountable. While other parties are intent on filling parliamentary positions with their impeachables, the DA seeks to close the gap in our law and bring integrity to our parliamentary bodies,' she said. Breytenbach called on interested parties to submit public comments on the proposed bill. 'Members of the public are strongly encouraged to give input on the Bill by making public submissions. Interested parties are invited to send their written submissions on the content of the Bill to the Speaker of the National Assembly by 31 August 2025.' The bill proposes amendment to sections 47, 106 and 158 of the Constitution. It will add to the list of citizens who are ineligible to become members of the National Assembly, a provincial legislature, and a municipal council respectively. The bill's memorandum states that the Constitution will be amended to provided that a former judge or person appointed in terms of Chapter 9, who was previously removed from office on the ground of either gross misconduct or misconduct, is not eligible to become a member of Parliament, a provincial legislature or a Municipal Council. [email protected]
Eyewitness News
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
DA bill aimed at blocking impeached individuals from serving in govt moves forward
CAPE TOWN- The Democratic Alliance (DA)'s bill aimed at blocking impeached individuals from serving in any level of government has taken its first step on the road to be considered a viable law by being published for public comment. Introduced by the party's justice spokesperson, Glynnis Breytenbach, the Constitution Twenty-Second Amendment Bill seeks to amend three sections of the Constitution to achieve this objective. The bill has been prompted by former Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane and former judge president John Hlophe both becoming parliamentarians, mere months after being impeached by the National Assembly. It was not until the sixth administration that Parliament faced impeaching a head of a Chapter 9 institution for the first time, and then the country's first two judges. READ: ActionSA introduces bill that would see removal of all deputy ministers The DA's Breytenbach said the bill seeks to plug a gap in the law that prevents impeached individuals from becoming members of a national or provincial legislature or a municipal council.
The South African
05-08-2025
- Politics
- The South African
Thabo Bester to Mkhwanazi: Who is daring DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach?
Two years after being praised for her no-nonsense approach to Thabo Bester's prison escape, Glynnis Breytenbach is now facing criticism over her comments about KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi. The DA's Spokesperson on Justice and Constitutional Development questioned why the top cop did not bring his grievances before parliament. Last month, Mkhwanazi made headlines after accusing the Minister of Police, Senzo Mchunu, of being involved in a politically-motivated criminal syndicate. The bombshell revelations were made in a media conference. Speaking on the DA's official podcast this week, Glynnis Breytenbach questioned Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi's actions last month. She said, 'He comes to the portfolio committee on police once a month. Why didn't he tell them about it? That was the appropriate space to raise it.' Glynnis also questioned Mkhwanazi's attire. She continued: 'To come to a press conference with people in full combat gear with automatic weapons and wearing masks, that looks like a coup loading.' Glynnis is one of 18 MPs who form part of the ad hoc committee established to investigate police corruption claims made by the KZN police commissioner. She added, 'We do look forward to it. It is going to be a very interesting ad hoc committee, and we really hope that we get clarity for South Africans.' On the X platform, Glynnis Breytenbach's comments about Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi were widely refuted. Many retweeted screenshots of clips from the KZN police commissioner's comments in parliament back in March. Others dismissed her claims about Mkhwanazi's approach. Glynnis Breytenbach is a feisty figure in the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services meetings held in parliament. The DA MP and Spokesperson on Justice is well-known for grilling ministers and stakeholders on their lack of accountability. Here is what we know about the smoking, swearing former prosecutor… She's a former NPA prosecutor who accused Richard Mdluli of corruption After almost three decades at the NPA, Glynnis Breytenbach was suspended in 2012 after she went after the head of Police Crime Intelligence. After being re-instated, Glynnis joined the DA in 2014. She's a published author Glynnis Breytenbach penned the memoir Rule Of Law about her experiences as a public prosecutor. The book also examines her views on 'the evolution and importance of an independent judiciary in South Africa.' It explains 'why the rule of law is critical to the foundation and the future of the country.' She survived two assassination attempts In her memoir, Glynnis writes about surviving two hits. That didnt scare her, though. In fact, she even attempted to run over her attacker. An excerpt in her memoir reads: ''What a f**king cheek, I'll drive right over you,' she [Glynnis] thought, and aimed her car at the front bike. 'I floored my car, and I hit him. The other two stopped to help him, and I left the scene'. She's a rebel who doesn't care about public opinion As a teenager, Glynnis Breytenbach claims she drove a motorbike and 'spent practically my entire high school in detention.' She said in her biography: 'I don't give a flying f**k if you like me or you don't like me. I'm not going to change.' Her favourite hobbies are 'swearing and smoking' In her memoir, she said of her vulgar vocab, particularly her favourite word – 'f**k,': 'It's expressive and can be used as an adjective, adverb, noun or verb. Its uses are endless. But I never ever use it in court or in Parliament.' Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
Eyewitness News
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Parliament to get to work on amending Constitution following high court order barring John Hlophe from serving on JSC
CAPE TOWN - Following last week's high court ruling that a judge impeached for gross misconduct can't serve on the Judicial Service Commission, Parliament is set to get to work on amending the Constitution during this administration. Besides a submission made to the Constitutional Review Committee by the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution (CASAC), the DA says a bill to this effect is already in the pipeline. ALSO READ: The party's justice spokesperson, Glynnis Breytenbach, said it's important to tighten the law to prevent impeached individuals from making a return in other spheres of government. The National Assembly speaker is yet to announce the next steps in filling the vacancy on the judicial service commission. The seat belongs to the MK party, which plans to appeal a ruling preventing its parliamentary leader, John Hlophe from serving on the body. CASAC wants Parliament's Constitutional Review Committee to consider amending sections 177 and 194 to specify that any person removed from judicial office or a Chapter 9 institution may not hold any other public office. Breytenbach, co-chair of the committee, said a Private Member's Bill has already been prepared and is with Parliament's legal drafters. "I think it's very important that Parliament is populated with MPs who are ethical, honest, reliable and have integrity, so the sooner we can prevent bad eggs like John Hlophe and Busisiwe Mkhwebane coming to Parliament, the better." The Western Cape High Court said in a judgment last week that the National Assembly had not acted rationally nor constitutionally when it rubberstamped the MK Party's nomination for the JSC.
Eyewitness News
08-06-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Parliament's Constitutional Review Committee receives more than 250 proposals to change the Constitution
CAPE TOWN - Parliament's Constitutional Review Committee has received more than 250 proposals to amend the Constitution. But it could take up to a year to decide how many of them are worthy of the attention of the committee which is currently still dealing with legal opinions on submissions made during the previous administration. ALSO READ: ActionSA proposes constitutional amendments to stem SA's immigration problems Co-chairperson of the committee, Glynnis Breytenbach says it's an arduous and painstaking process the committee will now embark upon after the deadline for submissions closed at the end of last May. The Constitution was last amended in 2023 to include sign language as an official language. Prior to that, the Constitution had not been amended since 2012 after an attempt to amend Section 25 to allow for land expropriation without compensation in 2021 flopped without the two thirds majority required by the National Assembly. Breytenbach says some submissions exceed 100 pages, and Parliament's administrative and legal staff will have to categorise the submissions depending on their substance. "It's not a must that the committee must find matters that must be brought to the National Assembly. If none of them are of any significant import, then we will again call for submissions." Breytenbach says it could take up to a year to grapple with these serious submissions. "Even that takes a long time because then you have to find the space for those people to come and present. You have to hear all the presentations. The pros and the cons." Among submissions received by the committee deal with the consequences for impeached individuals which Breytenbach says warrants Parliament's urgent attention.
