CABINET FACES CONTEMPT CHARGES OVER LOCKDOWN MOTION

LOBAMBA – Contempt charges are ‘looming’ against Cabinet.  

This follows Cabinet’s failure to implement a House resolution where the Members of Parliament (MPs) last week Friday passed a motion calling for the Executive to lift the two-week lockdown extension within 48 hours. The 48 hours elapsed on Monday.
At the start of the House sitting yesterday morning, Lobamba Lomdzala MP Marwick Khumalo informed the Speaker, Petros Mavimbela, that there should be some action taken as some members of the House (Cabinet ministers) had refused to implement a motion which had been adopted by the legislators.

Defied

“When that happens, certain steps are generally taken against the person who defied the House and this is the case currently,” said MP Khumalo. He said he had already forwarded a motion to the office of the Speaker, which the latter had allegedly already seen. At this point, the Speaker called for the House to form itself into a caucus where all other people who were present, including journalists, were asked to step out. It was going to be the beginning of another private meeting which took about one-and a-half hours in the chamber. Ordinarily, Tuesdays are reserved for Cabinet meetings, but that was not the case yesterday as about 10 ministers, including the Acting Prime Minister, Themba Masuku, were present. Although most of the MPs are normally sworn to secrecy, some of the sources revealed that indeed the issue under discussion was the non-implementation of the motion by government.

Instead, on Monday, Masuku tabled a report in the House where he informed the MPs that the COVID-19 pandemic was still prevalent in the country and the kingdom had not yet reached a stage where they may start relaxing all the sectors of the economy.
Issues which were touched on by the MPs during the debate of the motion were the non-indication from government on when schools would reopen, the prolonged ban on the sale of alcohol, the closing of retail shops at 6pm and the ban on church services.
Issues that were discussed were that shops should at least be closed at 8pm and that the curfew hours be shifted while convenience shops in filling stations should be allowed to operate for 24 hours.  Meanwhile, Section 11 of the Parliamentary Privileges Act, 1967 gives Parliament powers to punish for contempt.

Section 11 (3) states that any person who disobeys an order made by Parliament, or a committee duly authorised thereto for the attendance before the production of any paper, book, record or document to Parliament or such a committee or refuses to be examined before or answer any lawful and relevant question put by Parliament could be punished for contempt.

Resolution

The Act further states that if the person wilfully fails or refuses to obey any rule, order or resolution of Parliament, they can be punished with contempt. Section 11 (1) states that any offence mentioned in Subsection (3), whether committed by any member or any other person, summarily be punished for contempt by fine or otherwise as provided by the Standing Orders of Parliament. The Act further states that if any fine or punishment imposed is not immediately paid or undergone, the offender shall be committed to the custody of a person in charge of any prison or an officer of Parliament in such places as Parliament may direct. This could be for a period not later than the last day of the current session. Meanwhile, at the end of the caucus, the Speaker made no mention of what the matter which was being discussed in the chamber was.

However, as the MPs continued to debate the budget speech, Minister of Economic Planning and Development Dr Tambo Gina asked that the House business be adjourned. Gina said he had identified about eight Cabinet ministers who were still in the House, yet there was business which they had to urgently attend to which had been sanctioned by the legislators. However, Gina was not specific as to what business he was referring to and he was further ruled out of order. Gina said they were expected to give feedback today on the unmentioned assignment. The House then agreed to adjourn the sitting and it was reported that Finance Minister Neal Rijkenberg would, this afternoon, present his responses to the MPs.                          

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