Study Into MPs’ Work Ethic Sparks Outrage, Members of Parliament Slam Report for Being Inaccurate
- A new study found that the African National Congress and Democratic Alliance members had the best attendance among MPs
- The study also claimed that uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party and Economic Freedom Fighters had the worst attendance
- The study has been rubbished by members of Parliament, who claimed that it didn't take a lot of important facts into account
Source: Getty Images
A new study into the work ethic of Members of Parliament has been heavily criticised online.
The study, a collaboration between SABI Strategy Group and Hlaziya Solutions, sought to determine which MPs do the most work and attend the most meetings.
While the study found that uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) members demonstrated the worse attendance, its findings were shot down by many parliamentarians.
The MK Party has 58 members in Parliament, despite being just one year old.
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Study monitors MPs’ performance
Paul Berkowitz, founder of Hlaziya Solutions, explained that there was very little monitoring of MPs' performance before, something they wanted to change.
"We started this project to try and answer that question: are MPs doing their jobs?" he said.
It sought to answer whether MPs deserved their salaries. Many people feel parliamentarians get paid for nothing, and even the MK Party rejected the idea President Cyril Ramaphosa receives a salary increase on 6 December.
According to the study, the African National Congress and Democratic Alliance members have the best attendance records. At the same time, their findings revealed that the MK party and the EFF demonstrated poor performance and attendance in the first six months of the current administration.
"The worst-performing MPs are disproportionately from MK and the EFF."
The study was conducted between 14 June and 6 December.
Some things out of MPs’ control
Berkowitz admitted that there were challenges outside MPs’ control, which were not reflected in the study.
He noted that if MPs had two meetings on the same day and could only attend one, they would be marked absent for the other, which negatively affected their performance score.
Berkowitz made the admission after numerous MPs criticised the original study, saying it didn’t accurately represent the facts.
Study criticised by MPs
Following the study's publication, numerous Parliament members questioned how the study was conducted, saying that it didn’t accurately reflect their performances.
@NobuntuSA from BuildOneSA said:
“I sit on four portfolios committees (two as a main member) and have been in committee meetings every single committee day since we went into office in June. Every single committee day. I also have been present and active at almost every plenary sitting. It does mean that because some committee sittings are concurrent, I miss some portfolios, but to claim I am not in Parliament doing my work every single day is pure disinformation. I am disappointed that Paul Berkowitz would publish this without thorough analysis.”
@itsmmabatho, the NCOP Chief Whip of the MK Party, added:
“This is not true. Well, in my case, at least. Please verify your info with Parliament directly.”
@MatJGeorge from ActionSA said:
“ActionSA has six MPs, yet there are 34 committees, and as a result, we strategically divide our time across as many committees as possible to ensure effective oversight on every vital matter. This, however, makes it impossible for any member to maintain full (100%) attendance in a single committee. At any given time, while an ActionSA MP may be absent from one committee, they are guaranteed to be participating in another, as permitted by the rules.”
ActionSA’s @AtholT said:
“What also needs to be taken into consideration is the responsibility of non-portfolio committee duties. I, for example, serve on the JSC, which can take me out of parliament for two weeks. Then there are house committees that sometimes clash with portfolio committees.”
MPs disclose their wealth
Briefly News reported on 25 November that many MPs earn no income apart from the government salaries.
The revelation was discovered after MPs had to disclose their personal or business interests.
Al Jama-Ah leader Ganief Hendricks is one of the wealthier MPs thanks to his business interests.
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Source: Briefly News
