Dodoma. A constitutional wrangle ensued in Parliament yesterday over the tabling of the second National Five-Year Development Plan, with the Opposition accusing government of breaking House regulations by attempting to bulldoze a controversial motion.
The commotion caused House business for the day to be postponed in a continuation of drama in Parliament this week.
Yesterday’s uproar began after Finance and Economic Planning Minister Phillip Mpango tabled a framework of the second five-year development plan, and not the plan itself.
In response, opposition MPs urged the presiding chairman, Mr Andrew Chenge, to withdraw the minister’s motion arguing that it was a breach of not only the Constitution, but also House regulations.
How it happened
After the morning question and answer session, Mr Chenge called on Dr Mpango to table the second five-year development plan.
Instead, the minister tabled the framework of the plan sparking the wrath of opposition MPs.
Opposition lawmakers Zitto Kabwe (Kigoma Urban-ACT-Wazalendo) and Tundu Lissu (Singida East-Chadema) asked for the Chair’s guidance and raised the matter to Parliament’s attention.
The MPs argued that according to section 63 (3) (c) of the Constitution and section 94 of the Parliamentary Standing Orders, what was supposed to be tabled in the House was a long-term plan (either an annual and (or) a five-year one).
The Finance minister had tabled a framework, the MPs argued, something they said was not correct.
According to the lawmakers, the Constitution requires Parliament to enact a law to oversee the implementation of the plan, but the government had not yet tabled any Bill to that effect. Yet despite admitting that the two fiery opposition MPs had a valid argument, Mr Chenge controversially said he would take his time to give his guidance over the issue, and allowed House business to continue.
The chairperson of the Budget Committee, Ms Hawa Ghasia, then proceeded to table her report on the Finance minister’s motion.
But signs were all over that the matter had caused uneasiness in the House as senior ministers consulted each other.
Ministers Jenista Mhagama (Prime Minister’s Office Parliamentary Affairs), who is also the government’s Chief Whip, Dr Harrison Mwakyembe (Legal and Constitutional Affairs) and Mr William Lukuvi (Lands) could be seen consulting with the Attorney General (AG), Mr George Masaju.
Before that, the AG had a brief chat with Dr Mpango. Mr Kabwe and Lissu also held rounds of consultations with the ministers.
After Ms Ghasia’s contribution, it was the Opposition’s turn to present their assessment of the plan.
Their spokesperson, Mr David Silinde (Momba-Chadema), took the podium and said: “Since it has been clearly said here by my colleagues that the minister’s motion breached the Constitution, the Opposition will not present its assessment until the five-year development plan is tabled in Parliament.”
The Presiding Officer tried in vain to persuade the Opposition to table their report. He was forced to postpone the House business to allow the matter to be discussed.
The culprits
After the postponement of the morning session, Opposition MPs Kabwe and Lissu held an impromptu joint press conference, where they buttressed their argument saying the government’s mistake could not “go unpunished”.
Mr Lissu said AG Masaju was the biggest culprit in this drama because he had “shamed” and “ill-advised” the government.
He said: “This matter requires legal interpretation, and the AG was supposed to lead the government in the right direction. His office was supposed to draft a bill of law that could enforce the application of the development plan. He failed to present the bill. He must go.”
The outspoken legislator also said the composition of Parliamentary Committees that the Opposition has faulted was now proving costly.
“All these questions we have raised were supposed to be noted by the Budget Committee. Members of this committee are new, no one has been retained from the previous Parliament,” he said. His colleague, Mr Kabwe, said the Finance minister was also equally liable.
“Dr Mpango should know better. He was the Head of the Planning Commission when the government tabled in the House the Tanzania Five-Year Development Plan 2011/12-2015/16. So why is he now presenting a framework. President Magufuli should deal with him as well,” Mr Kabwe said. Back then the government also flouted the Constitution by not enacting a law to implement the Five-Year Plan. As a result only 40 per cent of the plan was implemented.
After resuming the session in the afternoon, Mr Chenge noted that there were serious flaws in the government’s motion on the development plan, but insisted that the Constitution was not breached.
“The government was supposed to table the draft plan to be debated by the MPs and not in a full House session as we witnessed in the morning. That was supposed to happen in October, but due to the General Election, it wasn’t possible.”
Mr Chenge went on to advise the government to withdraw the motion until it could provide the MPs with the draft Five-Year Development Plan, something Dr Mpango swiftly did.
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