President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the BELA Bill into law last week Friday. (GCIS)
- President Cyril Ramaphosa has defended his decision to sign the controversial Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill.
- In his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa said the Constitution obliged him to assent to it.
- Ramaphosa signed the Bill into law last Friday.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has used his weekly newsletter to defend his decision to sign the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill into law.
Ramaphosa revealed that despite a meeting last week, some parties in the GNU were “publicly urging” him not to sign the bill, while others said he should. The president added that he “had no such reservations” about the bill and that the Constitution compelled him to assent to it.
“The Constitution is quite clear on the responsibilities of the president with respect to signing legislation. Once a bill has been passed by Parliament, the president must either assent to the bill or, if they have reservations about its constitutionality, refer it back to Parliament. Since, after considering all the various submissions, I had no such reservations about the BELA Bill, the Constitution obliged me to assent to it,” he said.
Ramaphosa signed the BELA Bill on Friday, despite some opposition and politicking, but delayed the implementation of two clauses. These are Sections 4 and 5.
He added that the bill was part of the state’s ongoing efforts to build a more effective and equitable education system.
“As I signed the bill, I noted that some of the parties in the GNU said they wanted to engage each other on parts of the bill dealing with issues of school admissions and language,” he said.
“To give the parties time to discuss these issues, I said we would delay implementation of the act in order for parties to engage and come up with proposals, if any, on the relevant clauses.”
READ | BELA Bill: How Ramaphosa buckled to pressure from Solidarity and Afriforum
Ramaphosa said that, at times, agreements could be reached when matters came to a head at the last minute. This enabled all parties to focus on finding solutions and discover that there was more which united than divided them, he added.
Meanwhile, the DA has instructed its lawyers to continue preparing for court action on the process leading to the adoption of the bill.
The party’s lawyers have also been instructed to challenge the law’s substance on constitutional grounds.
Ramaphosa said:
We cannot guarantee that the parties that have requested timeout to engage will reach agreement on every difficult issue. But we need to make every effort to find common ground.
According to Ramaphosa, last week’s meeting also reflected on the GNU. The president said he was now more convinced that the GNU was essential for the growth and development of the country.
“There was general agreement among the party leaders last week that the GNU has made a good start. They believe that the GNU is working well and that everyone is playing a constructive role,” he said.
“As party leaders, we nevertheless recognise that the parties in the GNU represent a range of political and ideological perspectives. There are issues on which we disagree and there will be times when differences between the parties will become more apparent.”
Ramaphosa said he was aware that being in Cabinet was a new experience for some ministers and deputy ministers.
“But with the support of their departments, they have all hit the ground running. Across all parties, ministers and deputy ministers are making headway in confronting the challenges the country faces,” he added.
“Although they are drawn from different parties, they have pursued the common GNU programme. They have worked in a spirit of cooperation and collaboration as Cabinet colleagues to serve the interests of the South African people.
“I am convinced that the GNU will not only survive but that it will thrive. South Africans expect the GNU to succeed, and we will not let them down.”