Johannesburg:  National Assembly Speaker Max Sisulu has ordered the defence portfolio committee to resume work immediately on a bill they boycotted because his sister, Defence Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, has been reluctant to provide them with crucial reports. His instruction comes after the committee decided to stop all work on the defence amendment bill until the defence minister had provided it with two interim reports produced by the interim national defence force commission into army morale.

The committee insists that it needs the reports to process the bill, which will lead to the creation of a permanent defence force service commission. That body will advise the minister on salaries and working conditions of soldiers.

She has, however, told the committee that the reports cannot be released until they have been discussed by Cabinet.

Committee chairman Nyami Booi had asked for the Speaker's intervention after the minister refused to hand over the reports. The issue was referred to the Cabinet, which released a statement two weeks ago backing the minister, but undertaking to expedite the processing of the reports.  Buoyed by the Cabinet's stance, the committee decided to suspend work on the bill until the reports were made available.

On Thursday, the Speaker wrote to Booi ordering his committee to resume work as soon as possible.  "It is important to state that a committee of parliament has no power or authority to set time-frames for the Cabinet," he said.

Sisulu said he had received a letter from the defence minister assuring him that the reports in question had nothing to do with the bill before the committee and that she would hand over the reports once they have been processed by Cabinet.  "In light of the letter from the minister, it would seem there is no reason for the committee not to continue consideration of the bill."

He said the committee's boycott would delay the processing of legislation before Parliament.  "It is incorrect for a committee to simply not deal with a matter formally referred to it," he said.

But the DA has slammed the Speaker's stance, accusing him of failing to defend Parliament against the executive.  DA defence spokesman David Maynier said the Speaker had failed Parliament by siding with the minister.  "The Speaker has turned constitutional democracy on its head by supporting the executive rather than the legislature," he said.

Maynier said it was "hard to believe" the defence minister's claim that there was no link between the interim reports and the bill before the committee.  Maynier said he would write to the Speaker this week, requesting him to scrutinise copies of the reports and satisfy himself that there was no link with the bill.

Booi told The Times that in light of the letter from the Speaker, the committee had no choice but to process the bill. "You can't dispute the Speaker," he said.

*  By CAIPHUS KGOSANA, Sep 6, 2010