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The Rules Committee of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) has,at its first meeting today, appointed members to constitute the Select Committees, Subcommittee on the Review of the Council Rules and the Programming Committee of the 7thParliament.

The Committee also agreed to reduce the number of its Select Committees to 10 instead of the previous 11 of the 6thParliament. These Select Committees are the “engine room” of the NCOP as they are responsible for overseeing the performance of various government departments. Select committees are also crucial in ensuring consistent focus on provincial issues.

Meanwhile, elections to fill the four vacancies in the NCOPfor Permanent Deputy Chairperson, House Chairperson for Committees, House Chairperson for Members Support and International Relations, and the Programming Whip of the NCOP are now scheduled for Tuesday, 2 July.

The Rules Committee comprises 20 Council members, including the Permanent Deputy Chairperson, the Chief Whip of the NCOP, Mr Kenneth Mmoiemang, the House Chairpersons, the Programming Whip, and the Provincial Whips. Ms Refilwe Mtsweni-Tsipane, Chairperson of the NCOP chairs the Committee. 

NCOP Rule 133 provides that parties represented in the NCOP that do not have a Provincial Whip are entitled to be represented in the Rules Committee. The parties without provincial whips are the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the Freedom Front Plus (FF+); the uMkhonto Wesizwe Party(MKP), the Patriotic Alliance (PA), and the United Democratic Alliance (UDM). The EFF will be represented by Ms Mandisa Makesini, the FF+ by Ms Tamarin Breedt, the MKP by Ms Seeng Mokoena, the PA by Mr Bino Farmer, and the UDM by Mr Mandla Peter.

The NCOP Provincial Whips are Adv Mwelo Nonkonyana(Eastern Cape), Ms Mapule Dhlamini (Free State), Mr Mpho Modise (Gauteng Province), Mr Poobalan Govender (KwaZulu-Natal), Ms Regina Molokomme (Limpopo), MsSylvia Nxumalo (Mpumalanga), Mr Solomon Mabilo (Northern Cape), Ms Sylvia Sithole (North West), and Frederik Badenhorst (Western Cape).

According to Rule 137 of the NCOP Rules, the Rules Committee may establish a Subcommittee that can make recommendations on the Council Rules, Orders, proceedings, procedures, and practices. For the current purposes the five-member Subcommittee consists of the NCOP Chairperson, the NCOP Chief Whip, and Mr Bhekizizwe Radebe from the African National Congress; Mr Badenhorst from the Democratic Alliance and Ms Makesinifrom the EFF.

The NCOP Programming Committee, in terms of Rule 143,has the same members as the NCOP Rules Committee.

The decision to reduce the number of Select Committees to 10 will now mean that the Social Cluster will have two committees. The Select Committee on Education and Technology, Sports, Arts and Culture will oversee the Departments of Basic Education, Higher Education, Science and Technology, Communications and Digital Technologies, and Sports, Arts and Culture. The Select Committee on Social Services will oversee the Departments of Health, Social Development, Women, Youth Development and Persons with Disabilities, and Statistics South Africa.

The Governance Cluster will comprise two committees. They include the Select Committee on Public Infrastructure, overseeing the work of the Departments of Public Works and Infrastructure, Transport, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluationand the Select Committee on Cooperative Governance and Public Administration, overseeing the Departments ofCo-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Public Service and Administration, Human Settlements, and Water and Sanitation.

The Security Cluster has two committees, namely, the Select Committee on Security and Justice, overseeing the Departments of Police, Justice and Correctional Services, Defence and Military Veterans, Home Affairs, State Security, and International Relations and Co-operation, and the Select Committee on Public Petitions and Executive Undertakings.

Meanwhile, the Economic Cluster will comprise the Select Committee on Economic Development and Trade,overseeing the Departments of Economic Development, Trade, Industry and Competition, Small Business Development and Tourism, Employment and Labour, and Public Enterprises and the Select Committee on Land and Mineral Resources, overseeing the Departments of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development,Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, Mineral Resources and Energy, and Electricity. 

Finally, the Finance Cluster has the Select Committee on Finance and the Select Committee on Appropriations to oversee the Treasury.

Issued by Parliament