Parliament, Tuesday, 14 May 2024 – The Ad Hoc Committee on the General Intelligence Laws Amendment Bill today unanimously adopted its Report on the Bill. The committee first received legal advice from Parliamentary Legal Services on whether it may enquire into provisions of the legislation, which were not part of the Bill when it was referred to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) by the National Assembly.
The legal advice to the committee stated that, in terms of section 44(1)(b)(iii) of the Constitution, the power to make laws and make decisions on amendments to proposed legislation is vested in the committee. The committee must, however, be informed by the public participation process in line with the sentiment as espoused by the Constitutional Court in the Doctors for Life judgement.
Furthermore, the legal advice specified that, in respect of the powers of the committee to enquire into other aspects of the legislation, which were not part of the Bill as introduced, the Rules of the NCOP grant the committee the authority to propose the said amendments, however, the permission of the Council must first be sought prior to the amendments being effected.
The committee was further advised of the options that were available to it in respect of processing the Bill. These were seeking permission from the NCOP to enquire into the proposed amendments to the Bill as referred, alternatively to defer the amendments to the 7th Parliament.
The committee noted the legal advice and reached consensus on referring the below-listed matters to the Seventh Parliament for processing.
a) Amending the Secret Services Act 56 of 1978 to provide for the establishment of the Evaluation Committee within 12 months.
b) Appointment of the Deputy Chairperson of the Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence (JSCI).
c) Bi-annual meetings between the JSCI and the President on intelligence-related matters.
d) The alignment of the JSCI's annual reporting with parliamentary reporting requirements.
e) Appointment of the Deputy Inspector-General of Intelligence (DIGI).
f) Empowering the JSCI to designate the IGI to provide a specific oversight function.
The committee report will now be published on the Parliament Announcements, Tablings and Committee Reports. The Report on the Bill will then be tabled in and considered by the NCOP. Thereafter the Bill will be sent to the President for assent, in terms of Section 75 of the Constitution.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE AD HOC COMMITTEE ON THE GENERAL INTELLIGENCE LAWS AMENDMENT BILL, MR KENNETH MMOIEMANG.
For media enquiries, please contact the committee’s Media Officer:
Name: Ms Faith Ndenze
Parliamentary Communication Services
Cell: 081 377 0686
Email: fndenze@parliament.gov.za
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