Deputy speaker of the National Assembly ATTRACTOR CHISANGANO was this afternoon forced to instruct chairperson of committees of the whole house to suspend consideration of estimates of expenditure for the Office of the President and State House after opposition members protested on the floor.
The protest started when leader of the opposition in the house Brian Mundubile, who was called to debate the Motion of Supply-Head One (1) which covers estimates of expenditure Office of the President and State presented by Vice President Mutale Nalumango called on the chairperson to halt debate.
According to Mundubile, who is also member of Parliament for Mporokoso, proceeding to debate head one constituted an illegality.
He said the mandate of the President to discharge his constitutional functions was derived from Article 33 and 34 of the constitution, Act No 18 of 1996 according to the yellow book.
He stated that as it stands however the whole of part four (4) of Act No18 including Article 33 and 34 were repealed and replaced with part seven (7) of the constitution amendment Act number two (2) of 2016.
He said the current estimates of expenditure drew it’s mandate from a non existent constitutional provision. scrapped and amended in 2016.
He said that the opposition members of Parliament were constrained to debate debate head one as it would be engaging in an illegality.
The chairperson however ordered the debate to continue forcing the chanting opposition MPs to protest by going on the floor of the house amidst near the speakers dice.
