No quorum, no budget tabled again

Finance minister Ipumbu Shiimi was for the second time unable to table the mid-term budget due to a lack of quorum - amid calls to dissolve parliament during an election year.

This after only 47 voting members were present yesterday for the tabling of the budget against the 49 needed to meet a quorum. Despite wide appeals from parliamentarians to press Speaker Peter Katjavivi to allow Shiimi to proceed with the tabling of the budget, the session was - for the second time this week - called off.

The majority of National Assembly members are either in the field campaigning ahead of next month's elections, or out of town on official duty. However, the National Assembly secretariat said that is no excuse because the tabling of the budget was communicated way ahead of time.



'Unbearable'

Katjavivi described the situation as sad. “It is unbearable to not have a meeting because members are not available, this is very sad indeed. I thought we are not going to have a repeat of this, so I adjourn this house,” he said.

Providing feedback to the adjournment, he said the National Assembly would not be able to continue with the tabling of the mid-term budget due to the rules regarding the tabling of the Appropriation Bill.

“There are limitations in terms of what you can do if you are following the rules to the letter. In this case, if we had a normal sitting, we could have continued, but due to the fact that it was a single item, it left us with no choice but to let it go.”

National Council member Harald Kambrude from the Landless People's Movement (LPM) lambasted National Assembly members over the failure of the August House to make a quorum to enable Shiimi to table the budget.

“You should be ashamed of yourselves, National Assembly members. Sies, man!” he shouted from the viewing gallery after Katjavivi adjourned the sitting.



Reasons given for no-show

Speaking to Namibian Sun following the adjourned meeting, Swapo chief whip Julius Hamunyera Hambyuka said his fellow party members were out of town on official business, while others were on the campaign trail. “We tried our best to make up the numbers. We were at least 37. What I can say is that we had a bigger representation compared to the opposition parties,” he said.

LPM chief whip Utaara Mootu said her party had a 50% representation at yesterday’s session of the National Assembly, and shifted the blame to ruling party members who were not attending to the work of parliament.

“We have 70% of ministers and backbenchers not coming back, this is politics of the belly. We are seeing members of parliament not starting with the same enthusiasm they had in March 2020. It is not just an ordinary day, it should be treated with respect,” she said of the non-tabling of the budget.

Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) chief whip Elma Dienda argued that parliament should have been dissolved instead, in light of it being an election year.

“It does not reflect anything; it shows parliament must be dissolved in an election year. We have not learnt from our mistakes. What do you expect me to do? People are in the field campaigning, should I call them back?” Dienda remarked.

Mines minister Tom Alweendo - commenting in an interview on national broadcaster NBC - said lawmakers had an obligation to attend to matters relating to the work of parliament.

“What we have seen is people not pitching. I hope we can understand that we still have time to serve as members of parliament. We still have items on the order paper that need to be dispensed of."

Alweendo expressed hope that parliamentarians would, after campaigning, return to the National Assembly to finish the work of parliament.

“People are campaigning, and after the campaigning, we have no excuse not to come back and not finish the order paper."