SOME members of parliament are dodging the House after logging in their details for payment of their K1,500 daily sitting allowances, Speaker of the National Assembly Nelly Muti has revealed.
After attending Parliament and shouting “yaah yaah”, lawmakers are entitled to K1,500 for each sitting they attend and with four sittings a week, each MP gets K6,000 per week.
However, some parliamentarians have devised secondary school dodging tactics of escaping Parliament after logging in their details to be marked present.
Speaker Mutti sounded a warning to the crooked lawmakers just before proceedings took off yesterday afternoon.
“Before we start, I have one announcement to make, and those people who came in after we recited the National Anthem, please pay particular attention. Honorable members, it has been observed, firstly, that some members deliberately come late for sittings of the House, both at the start of each sitting, and following a health break,” Speaker Mutti said.
She said the situation has affected a quorum of the House, and thereby slowing down the amount of business for the House to transact each day.
“Secondly, it has been observed that some members have a tendency or have developed a tendency of leaving the House as soon as they log in their credentials into the electronic system and the sole intention of such conduct appears to be the payment of sitting allowance, even though they do not attend the full sitting. Sadly, such practice will also affect the committee setting,” she said.
“And in view of the above, and in accordance with standing order 242A which requires MP’s to be in the House a few minutes before the appointed time for the commencement of the sitting of the House and after each health break.”
Mutti informed the House that in order to curb such corrupt high school behaviour, attendance registers will continue to take names before each sitting and after the sitting in order to ensure that the payments for the sitting allowance is given to members that attended the full session.
“Additionally, honorable members are urged to stop abstain from merely logging in and thereafter leave the House for the rest of the sittng. I therefore, urge all honorable members to be punctual,” said Mutti.
By Buumba Mwitumwa
Kalemba June 23, 2023
