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MP TIMOTHY’S DESIRE TO SPEAK IN PARLY CUT

24/02/2023 08:01:00 Sabelo Majola

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MBABANE – The desire to make submissions in Parliament by Nkilongo MP Timothy Myeni, did not materialise as the debate was adjourned before he could utter a word.

Myeni joined over 15 Members of Parliament (MPs) who declared an interest in making submissions on a motion by the Prime Minister (PM) Cleopas Dlamini to move that a humble address be presented to His Majesty King Mswati III, thanking him for the speech he delivered on the occasion of the inauguration of the Fifth Session of the 11th Parliament on February 17. The motion was the only item on the order paper, making it the only business of the day as the legislators sat for the first time in the fifth session.

Colleagues

Prior to the sitting, the enthusiastic Myeni was heard telling his colleagues that he was ready to give reasons to the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Petros Mavimbela, on why he was absent during the opening of Parliament last Friday, something that he said would have formed part of his submissions had he got the chance to address the House, in an interview after the adjournment. Only a few seconds stood between Myeni and his keen interest to speak; and the adjournment of the debate, as the only thing he could do was adjust and position his microphone before the Speaker gave the floor to Motshane MP Robert Magongo, who stood on a point of order.

Motivated

Prior to that, the PM had already motivated his motion, followed by four other legislators in Shiselweni I MP Sipho Mndzebele, Deputy Speaker and Mhlangatane MP Madala Mhlanga, Minister of Public Service Mabulala Maseko and Manzini Region MP Busisiwe Mavimbela. Prior to motivating his motion of adjournment, Magongo tried to allow Myeni to continue with his debate, but the Speaker heard none of it and directed the former to continue with his point of order. Magongo’s point of order was a request to the Speaker to adjourn the debate and prioritise electing five members who would present the humble address to the head of State for his speech and he was seconded by Gege MP Musa Kunene.

Motivating his request, Magongo said the prior speakers were not submitting anything new but simply quoting the King’s speech. “Mr Speaker, it seems we are making the same submissions and we will end up ruining it all, let us adjourn the debate and prioritise electing the five members who will present the humble address on our behalf to the King,” he said. A disappointed Myeni rose and pleaded with the Speaker to allow him to speak, especially because he had already called his name for him to make his submissions.

“My Honourable Speaker, Mhlambanyatsi Member of Parliament, can you kindly oppose the motion to adjourn the debate and allow me to speak, especially because you had already called me to make my submissions. I seriously need to say something, especially because the DPM is in the House, I have something to share with him through my submissions,” he said much to the laughter of his colleagues. His request to oppose the motion by Magongo was seconded by Nhlambeni MP Manzi Zwane, who is one of the MPs who were not present during the opening of the Fifth Session of the 11th Parliament. However, the Speaker said now that a motion to adjourn the debate had been raised, the procedure of the House would be followed, which entailed putting it into vote. A great percentage of the MPs, through the vote, allowed for the debate to be adjourned while only Myeni and a few others opposed it.

Motion

The PM, when motivating his motion, stated that the King had called for the nation to be united in a nation building drive and work towards economic growth. He said the King called for patience with each other and not pointing of fingers and fighting. Shiselweni 1 MP Sipho Mndzebele also spoke about working towards a balanced and stable economy, not just numbers, which would bridge the gap between the rich and the poor. The subsequent speakers’ submissions boarded around striving for economic growth, particularly through the mining sector as revealed by the King, and also promoting co-existence, creating job opportunities and lessening the heavy reliance on South Africa for electricity.

When interviewed on what he wanted to submit prior to the adjournment, Myeni said it would not be proper for him to speak about that outside of the chambers, because it was something that formed part of the official business inside Parliament and he would wait for another opportunity to address it there. “We have portfolio committee debates coming up and I will utilise that opportunity to make my submissions on official Parliament business. Otherwise, it would not be proper for me to detail my planned submissions to the media,” he said.

However, Myeni did state that apart from the motion that was debated, he would have also used the same platform to explain his absence from the Parliament opening last week, as the Speaker had requested, through an article in the media. Worth mentioning is that the MPs who were not present during the opening of Parliament were present yesterday. They included Myeni, Siphofaneni MP Nomalungelo LaZwide Simelane, Nhlambeni MP Manzi Zwane and Nkhaba MP Zakhele Magongo. It could not be ascertained if all of them had reported their absence to the Speaker.