Mthimkhulu fails motion numbers

Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Friday December 6, 2019 14:31

The issue arose after the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bobonong, Taolo Lucas wanted to know the number of adopted parliamentary motions and their respective implementation statuses.

Lucas also wanted to know if the Minister was satisfied with the rate of implementation of such motions and if he (Minister) could come up with an implementation schedule of the said motions. 

“The list of adopted Parliamentary motions during the 10th and 11th Parliament is herewith attached, and will be given to the Honourable Member of Parliament. However, I have not indicated the implementation status of the motions, for the reason I would state below. A total of 45 motions were adopted during the 10th Parliament and 43 during the 11th Parliament”

“Mr Speaker, Standing Order 117 provides for the establishment of the Committee on Government Assurances. The committee is charged with exercising Parliamentary oversight and scrutiny, over assurances and resolutions made in Parliament.

The committee has to report the outcomes or results of the examinations to the NA at least once every session and once in a Parliamentary year. During the 10th and 11th Parliament, this committee experienced challenges such as lack of quorum and time constraints. As such, there is assurances backlog dating back to the 10th Parliament,” Mthimkhulu said this week. He said the committee was “yet to report to this Honourable House” its findings and recommendations, and that was why he was unable to provide implementation statuses of the adopted motions.

Mthimkhulu pointed out that he believed the new committee for the 12th Parliament would meet and address the assurances backlog since it had just been constituted.

The Assistant Minister said he was unable to draw up implementation schedule of the said motions, since the responsibility of their implementation laid with different government ministries.

However the leader of the opposition, Dumelang Saleshando said he was shocked that the Assistant Minister was failing to implement some of the motions even in his ministry. 

“Why is your Ministry keeping on requesting some money if important things cannot be implemented? From the 45 motions that were adopted you cannot recall if one or two motions had been adopted even in your Ministry. This is sad. What is the importance of Parliament to be coming up with motions if they cannot be taken seriously,” Saleshando queried.