Page:Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1993 from Government Gazette.djvu/14

26   No. 15466

(8) While presiding at a sitting of the National Assembly, the Speaker, Deputy Speaker or other member presiding shall not have a deliberative vote, but shall have and exercise a casting vote in the case of an equality of votes.

(9) The Speaker or Deputy Speaker shall vacate his or her office if he or she ceases to be a member of the National Assembly, and may be removed from office by resolution of the National Assembly, and may resign by lodging his or her resignation in writing with the Secretary to Parliament.

(10) If the office of Speaker or Deputy Speaker becomes vacant, the National Assembly, under the chairpersonship of the Chief Justice or a judge as provided in subsection (1), shall elect a member to fill the vacancy: Provided that the Speaker shall in such event preside at the election of the Deputy Speaker.

Qualification for membership of National Assembly

42. (1) No person shall become or remain a member of the National Assembly unless he or she is a South African citizen and is and remains qualified in terms of section 6  to vote in an election of the National Assembly, or if he or she—

at the time of the first election of the National Assembly held under this Constitution is serving a sentence of imprisonment of more than 12 months without the option of a fine; at any time after the promulgation of this Constitution is convicted of an offence in the Republic, or outside the Republic if the conduct constituting such offence would have constituted an offence in the Republic, and for which he or she has been sentenced to imprisonment of more than 12 months without the option of a fine, unless he or she has received a pardon; is an unrehabilitated insolvent; is of unsound mind and has been so declared by a competent court; or holds any office of profit under the Republic: Provided that the following persons shall be deemed not to hold an office of profit under the Republic for the purpose of this paragraph, namely—

an Executive Deputy President, a Minister or a Deputy Minister; a person in receipt of a pension paid from public funds or from a pension fund aided by public funds; a justice of the peace or appraiser; or a member of any council, board, committee, commission or similar body established by or under law or a committee of the National Assembly who receives remuneration not in excess of an amount equal to his or her salary as a member of the National Assembly.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1)(b) no person shall be deemed as having been convicted of an offence until any appeal against the conviction or sentence has been determined, or, if no appeal against the conviction or sentence has been noted, the time for noting such an appeal has expired.

Vacation of seats

43. A member of the National Assembly shall vacate his or her seat if he or she—

ceases to be eligible to be a member of the National Assembly in terms of section 42  ; ceases to be a member of the party which nominated him or her as a member of the National Assembly; resigns his or her seat by submitting his or her resignation in writing to the Secretary to Parliament; without having obtained leave in accordance with the rules and orders, absents himself or herself voluntarily from sittings of the National Assembly or any other parliamentary forum of which he or she is a member, for 15 consecutive days on which the National Assembly or any such forum sat; or