Is South Africa still a democratic Republic regulated by law, or has the ANC party captured the Republic and turned it into a totalitarian state?
We will know when Judge Slingers hands down her judgement on 3rd May 2022
The Action for Freedom (applicant) motion, filed in the Cape Town High Court under case number 8515/22 is very simple; the applicant, inter alia, prays for an order; Declaring that the Respondent, (the minister of health) failed to align his process for Public Consultation in terms terms of section 90 (4) (a) of the National Health Act to be ultra vires and invalid.
In plain language, the minister’s notice was illegal and therefore it never came into effect and must be thrown out. Should he choose, the minister must restart the process.
Section 90 (4) (a) of the National Health Act reads as follows:
“The Minister must publish all regulations proposed to be made under this Act in the Gazette for comment at least three months before the date contemplated for their commencement.” (Writer’s bolding)
The minister’s notice provided a one month public consultation period which he then extended for a further thirty days.
The minister erred, plain and simple which is plain to see, there is no grey area or scope for interpretation, the MINIMUM public participation process is three months.
Counsel for the respondent embarrassingly argued that subsection (a) above, the three month public participation period, described the upper limit of a time spectrum, even though section (a) is clear that three months is the minimum and not the maximum or upper limit; and that section (c) which provides for no public consultation period; “if circumstances necessitate the immediate publication of a regulation” provided the lower limit of the time spectrum. The minster’s counsel then argued that the minster could choose any public participation process up to three months, which is embarrassing.
The law is crystal clear in that provided there are no circumstances necessitating the immediate publication of regulations, and there are none, admitted by the minister, the minimum public participation process is three months, The minister has no legal authority to define a lesser period.
This is really a cut and dry decision for Judge Slingers who must remain independent and uphold the law, and not pander to either party and especially not to the government. The Court must find for the applicant and if it does not then this decision sends a very clear message that the High Court is captured and has become a blunt instrument of the government.
This would mean that South Africa is no longer an democratic Republic regulated by law, and has become a lawless, totalitarian state under the thumb of the ANC party. Many may say this would be an act of treason.
I believe it an extra 10 days not 30
And our comments in that extra 10 days would have been a waist of time.
It was a different topic altogether