Lone Fees Must Fall protester ejected from Ramaphosa Q&A

22 August 2018 - 15:51
By Thabo Mokone
Image: MICHAEL PINYANA Cyril Ramaphosa

Parliamentary bouncers have ejected a man who attempted to disrupt President Cyril Ramaphosa's reply to questions in the National Assembly on Wednesday.

The man‚ presenting himself as a student from an unidentified institution of higher learning‚ stormed the public gallery of the National Assembly shortly after 3pm when Ramaphosa started responding to questions from MPs.

The man hoisted a placard and shouted "fees must fall" while the president was addressing the house.

But members of the parliamentary chamber support staff moved swiftly to eject the lone protester from the public gallery in the presence of international guests from Japan.

Ramaphosa was responding to questions from MPs‚ including from DA leader Mmusi Maimane and Julius Malema‚ the commander-in-chief of the EFF.

Maimane is probing Ramaphosa on issues such as the rising unemployment and the controversial matter of expropriation of land without compensation.

Malema is seeking questions on the "government rush" to sign agreements with independent power producers.

Malema used his first opportunity to put a follow-up question to Ramaphosa to slam the conduct of the parliamentary bouncers.

"They did not even bother to ask him a question and they just frogmarched him from the house…this is no way to treat our young people‚" said Malema while ANC backbenchers jeered him.

Ramaphosa said Malema was correct to raise the matter‚ saying he had not noticed the ejection of the young man as he was focused on his speech.