IOS2601
Assignment 2 Semester 2 2026
Unique number:
Due date: 7 September 2026
QUESTION 1
1(a) Assent and commencement of the Act
The dates mentioned in the question refer to different stages in the life of legislation.
Adoption on 5 April 1996 means that Parliament completed the legislative process
and approved the Bill. Presidential assent on 10 April 1996 means that the President
formally approved and signed the Bill so that it could be published as an Act. The
official text of the National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996 records that the
President assented to it on 10 April 1996 and that it was published in the
Government Gazette on 19 April 1996.
, QUESTION 1
1(a) Assent and commencement of the Act
The dates mentioned in the question refer to different stages in the life of legislation.
Adoption on 5 April 1996 means that Parliament completed the legislative process
and approved the Bill. Presidential assent on 10 April 1996 means that the President
formally approved and signed the Bill so that it could be published as an Act. The
official text of the National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996 records that the
President assented to it on 10 April 1996 and that it was published in the
Government Gazette on 19 April 1996. 1
Assent does not always mean that an Act becomes enforceable on the same day.
Section 13(1) of the Interpretation Act 33 of 1957 provides the general rule that
legislation comes into operation on the day of publication unless the legislation itself
provides another commencement arrangement. The National Youth Commission
Act does provide another arrangement. Section 15 states that the Act will come into
operation on a date fixed by the President by proclamation in the Gazette.
Therefore, although the Act had already been assented to and published, its legal
provisions became operative only on 19 June 1996, the commencement date fixed
under section 15. The important difference is that assent confirms presidential
approval of the enacted Bill, while commencement determines the date from which
the Act has binding legal effect and may be applied. Section 13(2) also treats the
commencement day as beginning immediately after the end of the preceding day.
234
1(b) Determining the purpose of the Act and internal aids
The purpose of the Act should be determined by reading the legislation as a whole
and in its proper context, rather than by looking only at isolated words. Internal aids
1 National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996.
2 Interpretation Act 33 of 1957 s 13(2); Botha (n 2) 52.
3 National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996 s 15.
4 Interpretation Act 33 of 1957 s 13(1); Christo Botha, Statutory Interpretation: An Introduction for Students (5th
edn, Juta 2012) 49.
Assignment 2 Semester 2 2026
Unique number:
Due date: 7 September 2026
QUESTION 1
1(a) Assent and commencement of the Act
The dates mentioned in the question refer to different stages in the life of legislation.
Adoption on 5 April 1996 means that Parliament completed the legislative process
and approved the Bill. Presidential assent on 10 April 1996 means that the President
formally approved and signed the Bill so that it could be published as an Act. The
official text of the National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996 records that the
President assented to it on 10 April 1996 and that it was published in the
Government Gazette on 19 April 1996.
, QUESTION 1
1(a) Assent and commencement of the Act
The dates mentioned in the question refer to different stages in the life of legislation.
Adoption on 5 April 1996 means that Parliament completed the legislative process
and approved the Bill. Presidential assent on 10 April 1996 means that the President
formally approved and signed the Bill so that it could be published as an Act. The
official text of the National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996 records that the
President assented to it on 10 April 1996 and that it was published in the
Government Gazette on 19 April 1996. 1
Assent does not always mean that an Act becomes enforceable on the same day.
Section 13(1) of the Interpretation Act 33 of 1957 provides the general rule that
legislation comes into operation on the day of publication unless the legislation itself
provides another commencement arrangement. The National Youth Commission
Act does provide another arrangement. Section 15 states that the Act will come into
operation on a date fixed by the President by proclamation in the Gazette.
Therefore, although the Act had already been assented to and published, its legal
provisions became operative only on 19 June 1996, the commencement date fixed
under section 15. The important difference is that assent confirms presidential
approval of the enacted Bill, while commencement determines the date from which
the Act has binding legal effect and may be applied. Section 13(2) also treats the
commencement day as beginning immediately after the end of the preceding day.
234
1(b) Determining the purpose of the Act and internal aids
The purpose of the Act should be determined by reading the legislation as a whole
and in its proper context, rather than by looking only at isolated words. Internal aids
1 National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996.
2 Interpretation Act 33 of 1957 s 13(2); Botha (n 2) 52.
3 National Youth Commission Act 19 of 1996 s 15.
4 Interpretation Act 33 of 1957 s 13(1); Christo Botha, Statutory Interpretation: An Introduction for Students (5th
edn, Juta 2012) 49.
