Motion of no confidence: ‘Ramaphosa has nothing to worry about’ top analyst says

Political analyst, Steven Friedman says President Cyril Ramaphosa has nothing to worry about on the tabled motion of no confidence against his Cabinet. The vote is set to take at 14:00 on Wednesday.

This is one of the motions that will be debated on Wednesday. Another one was tabled by the African Transformation Movement (ATM) against President Cyril Ramaphosa. 

FRIEDMAN: ‘RAMAPHOSA HAS THE NUMBERS’

Friedman said Ramaphosa has nothing to worry about. 

“Both Ramaphosa and the Cabinet have more than enough votes to ensure that they are still there tomorrow morning,” he said.  

Friedman also said what everyone should be pleased about is the ruling out of the secret ballot.

“The idea that people who are elected  by other people should be allowed to have a secret ballot is very anti-democratic.

HOW DOES THE MOTION OF NO CONFIDENCE VOTE WORK? 

The DA will need a simple majority from all voters present in the house. This is known as the 50% + 1 rule. If all 400 elected Members of Parliament cast a vote, that means a total of 201 votes would need to be cast in favour of the no confidence motion for it to be successfully upheld.

The DA, and all other opposition parties, hold just 170 seats in the National Assembly. Even if it is assumed that everyone bar the ANC votes to oust the Cabinet, they are going to need an additional 31 votes from the ANC benches.

The DA had asked Parliamentary Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula to block Cabinet members from the proceedings, but their request was denied.

The DA’s no confidence motion in the cabinet, excluding the President, did not include a request for a secret ballot.

DA leader John Steenhuisen had argued that there would be a conflict of interest, if Cabinet members were allowed to take part in the motion of no confidence that seeks to remove them from office. 

ALSO READ: No confidence motion: Time, date, and live stream for huge Cabinet vote