The Democratic Alliance (DA) has demanded that ANC chief whip, Stone Sizani, apologise and withdraw his "fallacious accusations" against DA MP, Dianne Kohler-Barnard.
This comes after the ANC last week called for Kohler-Barnard - who formed part of the Ethics Committee that investigated allegations of misconduct against former communications minister Dina Pule - to be investigated and removed from the committee for "transgressing the ethics code".
Sizani said he had written to the speaker's office to request the investigation and removal of Kohler-Barnard, who he says violated her oath to confidentiality and the ethical code of conduct "by disclosing sensitive information to her friends on social media during the course of the hearing".
He claimed an article published in The Post, authored by Nazareem Ebrahim, indicated Kohler-Barnard regularly posted updates on the proceedings of the hearing.
DA deputy chief whip Sandy Kalyan has hit back at Sizani, saying Ebrahim confirmed she never received any information from Kohler-Barnard regarding the confidential deliberations of the committee. According to Kalyan, Ebrahim says her comments on the matter were "misinterpreted and taken out of context" by the ANC.
In turn, Sizani now accuses Ebrahim of "backpedalling", but says this does not impact the complaint the party has lodged with Parliament. "On Friday, the speaker referred the matter to the Registrar of Members' Interest for the attention of the Ethics Committee," says Sizani.
He notes the DA's statement is "illustrative of a deep guilty conscience and desperation to get itself and its member out of the messy situation they are in. We are neither intimidated by her legal threat nor bothered by the writer's alleged backpedalling.
The ethics committee also must not be intimidated by these desperate acts and should ensure that it pursues this complaint without fear or favour," he says.
Sizani says it is "an interesting coincidence" that Ebrahim decided to retract her comments a few days after the ANC announced its complaint against Kohler-Barnard. "In our view, the alleged retraction is just a side charade which has no bearing on the committee's responsibility regarding the complaint."
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