PM further adjourns Parliament
Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare on Monday further adjourned Parliament to give ample time to the government to look through the 2018 Budget.
When moving the motion for the special adjournment of parliament to Monday 30 October, the Prime Minister said the government is still tidying up the budget for 2018 and would need the whole of this week to go through the various budget documents.
Furthermore, He said the Bills and Legislation Committee (BLC) also still have some work to do on some of the bills before it.
“Some of the bills have gone through consultations already and some of them probably need report writings to be done.”
Prime Minister Sogavare added that the BLC has produced a report on the Prescription of Ministers’ Amendment Bill 2017.
The Prescription of the Ministers’ Amendment Bill 2017 was one of the bills the government put to Parliament to process for tabling at the present sitting.
The Prime Minister said the recommendation of BLC on the bill will be taken back to Caucus so it could look at how to further progress it.
He said bill is tied to other government policies such as the increase of the number of constituencies andthe work of the Constituency Boundaries Commission and Parliament and the nation must be comfortable with it before it is taken back to Parliament.
Prime Minister Sogavare also told parliament thata number of other bills including the Anti-Corruption Bill (ACB) will be brought to Parliament at its present sitting.
“There are also a number of other bills that will come to Parliament. The Anti-Corruption Bill has gone through Caucus and Cabinet and will come before Parliament as well.”
The Leader of Opposition Jeremiah Manele and Leader of the Parliamentary Independent Group Dr Derek Sikua both spoke in support of the special adjournment motion on behalf of the opposition and independent group benches.
Mr Manele said the adjournment is necessary in light of the need for ample time for government to look through the 2018 Budget and other bills including the Anti-corruption bill that it is working on to bring to Parliament.
Furthermore, he said the BLC needs time to work on the reports on the bills it has inquired into.
Dr Sikua said he supported the special adjournment motion in appreciation of the huge amount of work that the government needs to do on the 2018 Budget and also other bills that it will be bringing to parliament at the present sitting, including the Anti-Corruption Bill.
Manele proposes Legislative calendar
Leader of Opposition Jeremiah Manele has proposed the introduction of a legislative calendar by the government to ease the problem of constant parliament adjournments.
Whilst supporting the special adjournment motion moved by Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to postponed Parliament to Monday 30 October, Mr Manele said planning legislative schedules is something that the government needs to improve on.
He made the proposition in reference to the Anti-Corruption Bill which the Prime Minister said will be brought to Parliament in its present sitting.
“I would like to encourage the government that in terms of going forward with legislations, it should come up with a legislative calendar so that Parliament and the Bills and Legislation Committee could be guided as to when bills will be coming before it.
“I note the anti-corruption bill which is a very important bill for the government and of course our country has gone through Cabinet.
“I’m sure the Prime Minister when winding up this motion would elaborate more on when the anti-corruption bill will reach parliament so that the Bills and Legislation Committee can plan out its schedules and so on for such important bill.
“Going forward, this is an area that the government needs to improve on. This is not a problem of the present government only but successive governments too.
“Of course things will not really stick to a particular timeframe but at least a calendar should provide a guide in terms of how parliament the BLC for that matter to carry out its job so that we do not always have to adjourn parliament.”
The Prime Minister in response said the Opposition Leader’s comment on the legislative calendar is something that needs to be looked at by the government.
He said the issue of legislative calendar was talked about for so many years in Parliament and the government should seriously consider introducing.
The Prime Minister said having a legislative calendar will help government ministries to get bills ready on time for submission to parliament.
The Prime Minister however did not elaborate on when the Anti-Corruption Bill will reach Parliament.
CSOs welcome PM announcement on ACB
The Anti-Corruption Committee of the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) has welcomed the announcement by Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare in Parliament yesterday that the Anti-Corruption Bill has gone through Caucus and Cabinet.
The Prime Minister made the announcement when moving a special adjournment motion to postpone Parliament to Monday 30 October 2017.
The Prime Minister said apart from the 2017 Supplementary Bill 2018, there other bills that the government will bring to Parliament and one of them is the Anti-Corruption Bill.
Chairman of the CSO Anti-Corruption Committee Dr Huddie Namo told Solomon Star that whilst the committee was greatly disappointed that the ACB was not set down as an agenda on yesterday’s order paper, it welcomes the announcement by the Prime Minister that the bill has gone through both Caucus and Cabinet and will be brought to parliament.
Dr Namo said CSOs will maintain their presence in Parliament when it resumes next Monday as show of their seriousness about their petition to the Prime Minister to table the bill and to all Members of Parliament support it when put to vote.
He said the CSOs will not stop their advocacy of the bill upon its passage but will continue till the enactment of the bill.
Dr Namo thanked all members of the CSOs, Honiara Youth Council and Solomon Islands National University students and also members of the public who turned up in Parliament yesterday to show support for the CSOs Anti-Corruption Bill advocacy campaign.
He encouraged them to join the CSO Anti-Corruption Committee in Parliament again next Monday when it resumes.
The motion for special adjournment was passed and as such Parliament is postponed until Monday 30 October 2017.
The special adjournment will allow the government look through the 2018 Budget and also the Bills and Legislation Committee to complete its reports on the bills it inquired into.
CSOs slam poor Parliament attendance
The Chairman of the Civil Society Organisations’ (CSOs) Anti-Corruption Committee has slammed the poor attendance in Parliament yesterday by Members of Parliament (MPs).
“We were so disappointed by the poor turnout of MPs in Parliament yesterday. It is a slap on the face of the people of this nation who voted them in to represent them in the highest decision-making body in the land.”
He said understandably some Ministers did not attend Parliament yesterday because of other official engagements and this is acceptable but all other MPs should have been present in parliament.
Dr Huddie said it is the fundamental responsibility of MPs to attend Parliament and contribute to the debates on bills and other issues laid before Parliament for debate.
He said it is a great disgrace that some MPs have demeaned their status by becoming mere distributors of Rural Constituency Development funds and such MPs should not seek re-election at the 2019 national general elections.
