Civil rights organization AfriForum is heading to the Constitutional Court in a bid to force Parliament to change South Africa’s referendum legislation to give more powers to provinces so they can hold independent referendums.
The move is part of the group’s plans to gain greater autonomy for the Western Cape region, as outlined by the organisation’s chief executive Kallie Kriel.
Do you think @afriforum should approach the ConCourt to allow the Premier of the Western Cape to call a referendum regarding greater autonomy (more federal powers) for the province? #CapeAutonomy
— Kallie Kriel (@kalliekriel) September 21, 2021
This comes on the heels of a Parliament-sponsored Members’ Bill by DA’s chief whip Natasha Mazzone that would do essentially the same thing.
Regarding reports that AfriForum is setting up a civil society organization to front the court bid, Kriel said: “It is still early days. We are currently consulting with various stakeholders before we can finalize any plans.”
“If a new organization is needed, what its composition and name will be, is still under discussion.”
“What I can confirm now is that we plan to move the referendum legislation to the Constitutional Court to also allow the Prime Minister to call a referendum as permitted by the constitution, but not in the legislation.”
Kriel said said that the time frame for the court’s application was still under discussion with stakeholders.
More: IOL