PAC meets Speaker on Section 65, MSB
Public Affairs Committee (PAC) yesterday met Speaker of Parliament Richard Msowoya and said it is committed to see the implementation of Section 65 of the Constitution.
PAC’s call for implementation of the thorny Section 65 of the Constitution that regulates crossing of the floor among members of Parliament (MPs), has come barely a week after 11 of the 14 opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) MPs relocated to the government benches to enhance their party’s working relationship with Democratic Progress Party (DPP).
In an interview after the four-member PAC delegation met the Speaker in Lilongwe, chairperson of the interfaith democracy watchdog and advocacy group the Reverend Felix Chingota said the purpose of the meeting was to remind the Speaker about the commitment he made that he would defend and protect the country’s Constitution.
When The Nation asked Chingota that the office of the Attorney General advised the Speaker’s office that there was nothing wrong with UDF working together with DPP and sitting on the same side as long as they got nods from their constituents, the PAC chairperson said: “If there was nothing wrong with the UDF crossing the floor why is it that their leader [in Parliament Lucius Banda] has refused to move to government benches? We have a crisis here and this should be sorted out.”
On the disposal of State-owned commercial bank, Malawi Savings Bank (MSB), Chingota said by going ahead with the transaction after many calls from Malawians through Parliament to delay the process, the DPP administration is clearly not a listening government.
In a separate interview, Msowoya said his office has no powers to implement section 65 unless it is moved.
And on the MSB deal, Msowoya said Parliament has played its part and it is up to government to go ahead with the sale of the transaction. n
Its high time we became decisive with the way we handle issues of national importance. I believe that ‘almost’ doesn’t count and as such our parliament needs to make sure that they successfully protect people’s interests with regard to MSB issue. The government MUST be forced to listen and act in the interest of its people or else let it resign; why keep a group of unpatriotic and corrupt people as ‘government’ when their work is clearly against good governance and wishes of Malawians?