Opposition parties on Thursday began a no confidence debate on President Jacob Zuma by challenging the African National Congress (ANC) to allow a secret ballot so that ruling party members could vote according to their conscience.

The point was raised by Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) deputy leader Floyd Shivambu who argued, on a point of order, that since the president was elected by MPS by secret ballot, the same should hold when they were deciding whether to remove him.

“It is basic logic that if you vote for a person through a secret ballot and if you get to a point where that person has to be removed, you have to vote through a secret ballot,” he insisted.

Deputy Speaker Lechesa Tsenoli said this would mean a break with the rules of the legislature and could only be decided in an appropriate parliamentary structure.

African National Congress chief whip Jackson Mthembu rose to accuse the EFF of trying to disrupt Parliament and asked Tsenoli: “Why do you entertain this man?”

The United Democratic Movement’s Nqabayomzi Kwankwa proposed that the sitting broke for a while to allow the chief whips to meet to discuss the matter.

Tsenoli declined, saying “there will be no change”.

ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe earlier this week dismissed suggestions that the ruling party should allow a secret ballot for the fifth motion of no confidence in Zuma since 2012, saying it was misplaced and not workable.

He also rejected calls for Zuma to step down in the wake of former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s report State of Capture as “premature and unfounded”.