In South Africa, opposition introduces bill to give provincial premiers the power to call referendums

By Jason Felix, 28 June 2021
Parliament building in South Africa (photo credit: parliament.gov.za)
Parliament building in South Africa (photo credit: parliament.gov.za)
The [Democratic Alliance] is pushing for amendments that would give the nation's nine premiers powers to call for referendums. [...] Section 84 of the Constitution provides that the president is responsible to call a national referendum in terms of an Act of Parliament. Similarly, Section 127 of Constitution provides that the premier of a province is responsible for calling a referendum in the province in accordance with national legislation. [DA parliamentary chief whip Natasha Mazzone] said this bill highlighted the DA's commitment to achieving greater devolution of powers to provinces, in line with the Constitution. [...] "The DA's draft bill seeks to address this gap in legislation by repealing the Referendums Act and amending the Electoral Commission Act. This will enable premiers to exercise their constitutional powers to call a provincial referendum, to ensure that provincial residents can make their voices heard on important service delivery issues," she added.
Read the full article here: News 24

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