Parliamentarians are likely to have to take personal responsibility for social media postings conducted during official proceedings, the Sunday Times reported.<\/p>\n
“If a member sits in the house or a committee and sends out tweets, does the whole parliamentary privilege apply?” ANC member Cedrick Frolick, the house chairman responsible for committees who is tasked with drawing up a new social media policy for parliament, told the newspaper.<\/p>\n
Currently, politicians have a parliamentary privilege whereby they are able to make statements – or even accusations – during the national assembly or committee meetings without being liable for civil litigation.<\/p>\n
However, Frolick said it was a “huge question mark” as to whether this privilege could be extended for social media postings.<\/p>\n
“You don’t know what this member is tweeting or posting, so that member is ultimately personally responsible for it.”<\/p>\n
He said social media postings such as tweets could not be noted in Hansard, the official record of parliamentary proceedings.<\/p>\n
“If you put information in the public domain about what is happening in parliament and it is not a true reflection of what is going on, then you must expect that people are going to expose you for giving the wrong information.”<\/p>\n
Pule victim of political smear campaign: spokesperson<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n New revelations in Dina Pule saga<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Gauteng online schools project to be reviewed<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Political meddling to blame for SABC crisis<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n