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Cape Town - The continued employment of the Parliamentary Protection Services has brought back a culture of violence last seen during the assassination of Hendrik Verwoerd, the EFF's Sam Matiase said on Tuesday.
He was speaking during the rules sub committee meeting on Tuesday.
While ANC MPs called for a rule to physically remove MPs from the house to be made permanent, the EFF said this was an intimidation tactic.
Rule 53A, which called for the physical removal of MPs from the National Assembly if they defied an order by the presiding officer to leave, was adopted by Parliament as an interim measure in July.
The rules sub committee was reviewing all the rules of Parliament, and chairperson and ANC MP Richard Mdakane said they would be asking the full rules committee to pass the rule so it would be permanent.
Matiase maintained the new rules were to instill fear in members of Parliament, to prevent them from speaking freely in the House.
"[This is] For MPs to be intimidated and also to bring back a culture of violence in an unprecedented manner. The last time blood was shed in Parliament was in the 60s when Dimitri Tsafendas stabbed [former prime minister Hendrik] Verwoerd.
"That's what the ANC want to see in this Parliament. The amount of time they put into the review of Parliament rules is to create that environment."
Matiase said the ruling party was pushing them to breaking point.
"And if they want to see bloodshed here, they should insist on the militarisation of Parliament. We are not going to take it lying down. We are peaceful, but we are fearless at the same time."
