ANC sets up its own committee on secrecy bill

THE ANC has moved to clamp down on a groundswell of opposition to the new secrecy law by setting up its own private committee to gather input on the controversial bill. The DA said in reaction that the ANC had abused parliamentary procedures, because the bill is set to be voted on by Parliament. The only committee that has the right to hear new submissions is a parliamentary committee. The ad hoc parliamentary committee on the Protection of Information Bill was dissolved when the ANC removed the vote on the bill from the parliamentary order paper last week.

ANC chief whip Mathole Motshekga has established the new ANC "information bill unit" in his office, said ANC parliamentary caucus spokesman Moloto Mothapo yesterday. Mothapo said the unit would soon hold public meetings with "ordinary people in the remotest village" to hear their views on the bill.

Dale McKinley of the Right2Know Campaign slammed the move. "They promised more public hearings, but these hearings are led by the ANC and not Parliament. If the ANC is only going to talk to its own people, who it picks and chooses, then it is turning its back on the public participation process," McKinley said.

Fatima Hassan of the Ndifuna Ukwazi campaign (dare to know) said "the remotest village argument is interesting as this is something that Parliament should have led in the beginning".

Source: The Sowetan