Comprehensive summary of the prescribed content. Contains section A (constitutional history) and section B (constitutional concepts). Purchase 'Constitutional Law Test 2 Part 2' for 'Separation of Powers'.
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW 271: Notes
Study guide 1: Constitutional history and basic constitutional concepts and principles
Prescribed materials for the module:
• South African Constitutional Law in Context (2014) Pierre de Vos et al
• The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996
• Case Law
• Study guide
Marks:
• 40% - test mark (2/3 tests are compulsory)
• 40% - assignment (written assignment – term 3)
• 10% - tutorials
• 10% - portfolio (consists of all the tutorials, assessments & tests)
Contents of notes:
Slides, class notes, and prescribed textbook, articles and short case summaries. Study guideline included.
SECTION A: Constitutional History
Section B to follow
Table of Contents
1. THE PURPOSE OF A CONSTITUTION IN A DEMOCRACY; ........................................................................................ 2
ROLE PLAYERS IN CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRACY: .................................................................................................................. 2
EFF 1:............................................................................................................................................................................ 2
EFF 2:............................................................................................................................................................................ 3
PURPOSE OF THE CONSTITUTION & CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: ..................................................................................................... 3
SEPARATION OF POWERS AND JUDICIAL OVERREACH: .............................................................................................................. 4
EVOLUTION OF SA CONSTITUTIONAL ARCHITECTURE ............................................................................................................... 4
2. COLONIAL AND APARTHEID CONSTITUTIONALISM .............................................................................................. 4
COLONIAL AND APARTHEID CONSTITUTIONALISM: .................................................................................................................. 5
3. TOWARDS A NEGOTIATED CONSTITUTIONAL REVOLUTION ................................................................................. 9
4. THE FINAL CONSTITUTION ................................................................................................................................. 13
ADOPTION OF THE "FINAL" CONSTITUTION ......................................................................................................................... 13
THE 2 STAGE PROCESS - AN EVALUATION ............................................................................................................................ 14
CONTINUITY AND CHANGE ............................................................................................................................................... 14
A TRANSFORMATIVE CONSTITUTION .................................................................................................................................. 14
5. THE CERTIFICATION JUDGMENT ........................................................................................................................ 15
SECTION B: BASIC CONSTITUTIONAL CONCEPTS & FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF NEW CONSTITUTIONAL ORDER
............................................................................................................................................................................. 18
1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................. 18
BASIC CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES: ................................................................................................................................. 18
2. RULE OF LAW (PART 1) ...................................................................................................................................... 21
RULE OF LAW: ............................................................................................................................................................... 21
BRIEF HISTORY: .............................................................................................................................................................. 21
FORMAL & SUBSTANTIVE UNDERSTANDING:........................................................................................................................ 22
RULE OF LAW UNDER THE 1996 CONSTITUTION: ................................................................................................................. 22
1
, RULE OF LAW & THE PRINCIPLE OF LEGALITY:....................................................................................................................... 23
3. RULE OF LAW (PART 2) ...................................................................................................................................... 24
4. REPRESENTATIVE & MULTIPARTY DEMOCRACY ................................................................................................. 25
DEMOCRACY: ................................................................................................................................................................ 26
REFERENDUM/REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY: .................................................................................................................... 26
AN INEGALITARIAN SOCIETY & A ONE-PARTY DOMINANT DEMOCRACY: .................................................................................... 28
5. DIRECT & PARTICIPATORY DEMOCRACY ............................................................................................................ 28
DIRECT DEMOCRACY: ...................................................................................................................................................... 29
PARTICIPATORY DEMOCRACY: ........................................................................................................................................... 29
1. The Purpose of a Constitution in a Democracy;
Contemporary Challenges in South Africa's Constitutional Democracy.
Content
• Introduction to constitutional history: contemporary viewpoint
Prescribed reading
• Economic Freedom Fighters v Speaker, National Assembly and Others 2016 (3) SA 580 (CC) [EFF 1]
• Economic Freedom Fighters v Speaker of the National Assembly (CCT76/17) [2017] ZACC 47 (29 December
2017) [EFF 2]
Role Players in Constitutional Democracy:
1. National Assembly: legislative branch
• Elected by the voting-age population of the country
• Proportional representation over a total of 400 seats
• The national assembly elects a president for the republic, from the ruling party
• It is the duty of the NA to hold the president accountable (but this is difficult because of party discipline
and the agenda of a ruling party)
2. State president as head of state: executive branch
• President is the head of the executive branch of the trias politicas
3. Courts (most importantly, the constitutional court): judicial branch
• Judges are appointed by the president – and so this creates tension in the democracy, because they have
power over those who are democratically elected
• Play a relevant role - invalidate conduct or law in conflict with the constitution
4. Public Protector
• Chapter 9 Constitution: State institutions supporting constitutional democracy.
• Their role is to strengthen our constitutional democracy.
• S182: PP has the powers to “investigate any conduct in state affairs, or in the public administration in
any sphere of government” and “take appropriate remedial action.”
• PP may investigate anything, except judicial decisions.
EFF 1:
Background:
• EFF takes Zuma to court about upgrades on Nkandla and the mismanagement of funds. Public protector’s
remedial action was ignored.
• Complaints were lodged against the PP, by the public and a member of parliament.
• Report released called: “Secure in Comfort”
• Remedial action proposed in this report - pay back a portion of the money and reprimand ministers, report
to NA.
• National Assembly makes their own investigative committees – they find president not liable for paying back
this money.
o Party discipline - ANC members want to protect and exonerate Zuma.
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, • EFF approaches the constitutional court to challenge the fact that the remedial report could not be
discarded in this way.
• Exclusive jurisdiction of CC – matters of dispute between the branches of government, as well as situations
where the NA or president is not fulfilling const. duties.
• Legal nature of the remedial action – it is legally binding and the president is obliged ito S182 to comply with
it. “You ignore the public protector’s remedial action at your own peril.”
• NA did not have the power to disregard the PP’s report via their own investigation; the only constitutionally
acceptable remedy here would be to approach the CC.
Order of the court:
1. Remedial action taken by PP against the president, is binding.
2. In not complying with the PP’s remedial action, president acted in infringement of the constitution.
3. President must pay back reasonable cost for non-security upgrades.
4. The NA’s resolve to absolve the president of guilt for this action, is inconsistent with the constitution.
EFF 2:
Background:
• Follows in the wake of EFF 1.
• Dealing with the failure of the National Assembly to fulfill some of its constitutional obligations, such as
having mechanisms in place holding the president accountable.
• Unprecedented CC split – 4 judgments, 2 dissenting judgments wherein the chief justice dissented.
• Split in that the chief justice believed that there was an overreach on the part of the judiciary – in terms of
the majority judgment.
o “In his concurring judgment, the Chief Justice characterises the majority judgment as a textbook case
of judicial overreach - a constitutionally impermissible intrusion by the Judiciary into the exclusive
domain of Parliament.”
• Each judgment interprets the constitution and separation of powers in a different way.
• The core challenge with the architecture of power in the constitution is the separation of powers and who
has responsibility for what.
• Response to the argument that there weren’t mechanisms to hold the President accountable:
o “In a judgment by Zondo DCJ in which Mogoeng CJ, Madlanga J and Zondi AJ concur, the Deputy
Chief Justice held that the National Assembly had not failed to put in place mechanisms that could be
used to hold the President accountable for his failure to implement the Public Protector’s remedial
action. Zondo DCJ said that this was so because the National Assembly made provision for motions of
no confidence as well as for the establishment of an ad hoc Committee which could be used for any
investigation or inquiry that may be required in any particular case for an impeachment process
under section 89. In this regard the Deputy Chief Justice pointed out that, although the applicants
had initially included in their case, the complaint that the National Assembly had not put in place the
relevant mechanisms, they later changed their position and accepted that the National Assembly had
put in place mechanisms that were flexible enough to be used even in an impeachment process under
section 89.”
Purpose of the Constitution & Constitutional law:
• Recourse, distillation (most NB aspects) of ideals of a society, guideline for decisions based on an ideology.
• A framework and parameters to gauge actions and decisions.
• Provides for the roles of everyone in an organization - who is responsible for what?
• Assignment of rights to citizens.
• The constitution defines the architecture of a society (democratic or not) – in doing so, covering all of the
roles and rights and ideals of this society. It provides STRUCTURE and RULES.
• Founding document of a nation as the authority of the state is derived from it. It sets up the structures of
government and authorities as well as regulates the exercise of power by the elected branches of
government” – De Vos.
• In modern states, like South Africa, the constitution also establishes and regulates administrative oversight
institutions that support and strengthen constitutional democracy.
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