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President Ramaphosa might turn to ConCourt to resolve SABC Board impasse: Analysts

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Legal analysts say President Cyril Ramaphosa may approach the Constitutional Court to try and review the resolution of the National Assembly on the candidates to be considered for the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) Board.

However, they say that the legal option is unlikely to be successful.

This follows the opinion of Parliament’s legal advisor Andile Tetyana who found that the President acted unlawfully when he wrote to Parliament, referring the matter back to the National Assembly.

Tetyana says Ramaphosa is not legally empowered to prescribe that the National Assembly reconsider its recommendations to him on candidates for the SABC Board.

The apex court is the only relief that can be sought by the President, as the two spheres of government fail to reach common ground on the matter.

“ The constitution creates a mechanism which effectively directs the president to bring that application in the Constitutional Court because what would have happened in this scenario would be two spheres of government not coming to agreement with respect to the powers of either of them so essentially …powers of the National Assembly are with respect to the appointment of the SABC non-executive board members and that dispute would fall to the Constitutional Court to adjudicate it,” says legal analyst Reitumetsi Phiri.

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