An inquiry into the role of the National Assembly to hold the executive to account in South Africa

Abstract

The National Assembly as one of the house of Parliament of the Republic of South Africa is given the constitutional mandate to ensure accountability. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa in section 55 empowers the National Assembly to provide mechanisms to ensure executive accountability. The National Assembly has in recent years been labelled a constitutional crisis following criticism against it for not having fulfilled it constitutional mandate. For example the Nkandla residence debacle. Accountability is the main reason for the research. The study focus on the research question, did the National Assembly of The Republic of South Africa perform as constitutionally mandated in holding its executive accountable. The is study also focus on the reasons for failure by the National Assembly as well as possible findings and solutions.