Cape Town - The push to give Premiers of provinces powers to call for referendums has been resuscitated again.
This after the DA again published its intention to introduce a bill that will see the Electoral Commission Act amended to give the power which is presently residing with President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The intention to introduce the bill comes two years after the DA published a notice in the government gazette to amend the Electoral Commission Act to provide for premiers to be authorized to call for referendum and the repeal of the Referendum Act of 1983.
This time around DA MP Cilliers Brink has re-submitted the same notice that was published by former party’s chief whip Natasha Mazzone in June 2021.
Brink said the Constitution provided that the president was responsible to call a national referendum in terms of an Act of Parliament.
He also said the constitution provided that the premier of a province was responsible to call a referendum in the province in accordance with national legislation.
“The current legislative framework under the Electoral Commission Act and the Referendums Act does provide for the holding of referendums in order to ascertain the views of voters, but both Acts only provide for mechanisms available to the president to call for a national referendum.”
Brink also said neither the 1983 Referendum Act nor the 1996 Electoral Commission Act provided for a premier to call for a referendum in a province.
“The premier of a province is currently unable to call a referendum in a province as no provision is made for such a process in national legislation.
“This is despite such national legislation being required by the constitution,” he said.
Brink said it was also not clear why the 1983 Referendum Act has not yet been repealed.
“The Electoral Commission Amendment Bill, 2023 (“draft Bill”) therefore seeks to extend the application of the Electoral Commission Act, 1996 to include a mechanism for the premier of a province to call for a referendum, repeal the Referendums Act, 1983 and provide for matters connected therewith.”
Those wishing to make submissions on the proposed content of the draft Bill can write to the Speaker of the National Assembly Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula within 30 days of the publication of the notice on February 10.
In 2021, there had been a push to give the power to premiers of provinces to call for referendum.
At the time the Cape Independence Advocacy Group and Cape independence and Cape Independence Party wanted the Western Cape to be independent from the country.
Afriforum entered the fray when it resolved at its congress in Knysna in November 2020 for “growing autonomy”.
The civil society group had threatened to take the referendum legislation to the Constitutional Court to allow a premier to also call for a referendum as allowed for in the Constitution.
Afriforum CEO Kallie Kriel said they would be meeting their legal team on the matter.
"We will be able to speak to you regarding the way forward on Friday,“ he said.
Cape Times