ActionSA has gazetted its notice to introduce the Constitution Twenty-Second Amendment Bill, calling on South Africans to submit their submissions in favour of the Constitutional Amendment, which would see a significant overhaul of the size of the South African executive.

Cabinet currently consists of 32 Ministers and 43 Deputy Ministers, which ActionSA has described as “bloated”.

ActionSA parliamentary leader Athol Trollip explained that the Constitution Twenty-Second Amendment Bill will abolish the role of Deputy Minister entirely, removing all 43 Deputy Ministers to save South Africa “billions”.

He said ActionSA’s proposed amendment followed a series of governance failures, the latest being President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to place Police Minister Senzo Mchunu on special leave amid allegations of interference in police investigations and ties to criminal elements made by KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.

“In response, the President announced that Professor Firoz Cachalia, currently a non-MP and non-Minister, would be appointed as Acting Minister of Police. Thus, surpassing the two current police deputy ministers. However, until Cachalia is formally sworn in under sections 91(3) and 95 of the Constitution, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe is presiding over the police portfolio in an acting capacity,” he noted.

Trollip said this came amid other “questionable” ministerial appointments, such as that of Thembi Simelane, who was implicated in the VBS corruption scandal and yet was appointed as Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development before a late-night portfolio swap with Mmamoloko Kubayi, then Minister of Human Settlements.

ActionSA has claid criminal charges against Simelane.

Trollip claimed serious structural flaws in the current constitutional framework.

“…firstly, Deputy Ministers are not constitutionally empowered to act in the absence of their Ministers, rendering them useless in moments of executive disruption. If Deputy Ministers cannot step in during a crisis, what purpose do they serve beyond being instruments of cadre deployment and financial waste,” he questioned.

He called out the President’s “unfettered” prerogative to appoint and dismiss Ministers without parliamentary oversight, adding that this resulted in questionable appointments that escape proper scrutiny.

“Given that Ministers occupy positions of significant power and influence within the Republic, a higher standard of accountability and transparency must necessarily be applied to their selection with the ability of Parliament to also dismiss them,” he added.

Trollip said South Africans will have 30 days to email their submissions in favour of the Constitutional Amendment to speaker@parliament.gov.za and copy in parliament@actionsa.org.za.

“Parliament must not only clean up the executive’s failures – it must be empowered to prevent them. South Africa cannot afford to drift leaderless during moments of national crisis. This Constitutional Amendment is ActionSA’s commitment to restoring integrity, professionalism, and accountability in the executive, while placing the power of appointment and removal where it belongs: in the hands of the people’s Parliament,” he said.

He said these positions were redundant and served no meaningful governance purpose, highlighting that the Bill would mandate parliamentary vetting of all Cabinet appointments, first through a committee set up specifically for this purpose and then through a vote of the National Assembly.

The National Assembly would be empowered to remove individual Ministers through motions of no confidence, ensuring that Parliament, and not just the President, could enforce accountability.

The Bill would also see several Ministers who may be appointed from outside Parliament increased from two to four, allowing qualified professionals and subject-matter experts to serve in Cabinet and bring fresh expertise into government.

“These reforms are not introduced in isolation. They form part of ActionSA’s broader Cabinet Reform Package as announced in March 2025, which also includes the Enhanced Cut Cabinet Perks Bill, now formally tabled before the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development,” Trollip said.

He explained that the Bill introduced long-overdue oversight over the Ministerial Handbook and included an end to the President’s “unilateral power” to amend the Ministerial Handbook without oversight.

It requires that all amendments ought to be reviewed by the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers, with consideration for prevailing economic conditions.

It also compels the President to report all changes to Parliament and publish them on the Presidency’s website within 30 days, while mandating a comprehensive parliamentary review of all Cabinet and Presidential perks immediately, and at least every five years thereafter.