Hon President, your explanation that you delivered your speech on 6 August to the Pretoria Press Club, under the assumption that your correspondence had gone to leaders of opposition parties informing them of your nomination of Adv Ngcobo, dated 5 August, is acceptable. However, the opposition parties only received this letter on 7 August after you had publicly announced that you had consulted opposition parties and the JSC.
The failure of your office and the Presidency to forward this letter to opposition parties on 5 August has resulted in the President's office undermining the constitutional requirement of the consultation process, has caused great embarrassment to the Office of the President has highly offended and opposition parties the lack of consultation.
Notwithstanding your personal explanation to me and to the media about your slip of the tongue and your response today, I would like to ask who in your office was responsible for compiling and sending the correspondence to opposition parties which, incidentally, also referred to an appointment and not a nomination. Secondly, I would like to ask whether any action has been taken against this person or persons for failing to send the appropriate correspondence at the appropriate time to opposition parties before you made the announcement about nominating Judge Ngcobo. Thank you. [Applause.]