Venidora Oliveira – Many MPs routinely break the parliamentary regulations by coming late, failing to sign in and not attending plenary sessions, the Judicial System Monitoring Program (JSMP) said.
JSMP found there was often a high number of MPs absent without justification and some also failed to sign their timesheet as required.
"They break the regulations written in line D, article 10 in the law no. 15/2009 about the parliamentary regulations," Executive Director of JSMP Luis Oliveira Sampaio said.
According to JSMP, there were 52 plenary sessions in 2015 and the total MPs was 65. Of these, 30 were from CNRT, 25 from Fretilin, 2 from Frente Mudansa and 8 from PD. The total number of party members that attended plenary sessions in 2015 was CNRT: 1560, Fretilin: 1300, PD: 412 and FM: 104.
He said data analysis of the period between January and June 2015 showed that the total attendance figures were 1307 for CNRT, 849 for Fretilin, 374 for PD and 63 for FM. "Their attendance is not adequate yet and it is not a good example for other public institutions," he said.
Meanwhile, MP Ilda Maria da Conceicao said MPs were absent because they had other commitments. "Sometimes they attend a meeting or have an invitation from the government or other organizations, therefore they are absent at the plenary," she said.
She acknowledged that while the absences did impact on the plenary sessions, it was usually only a small percentage of MPs who did not take part, and this did not affect deliberations or decisions on laws. "We can still have a vote in the plenary even if some MPs do not take part," she said.
Although politicians who breached regulations could be subject to sanctions, they could not be removed from their position. "As an example, an MP who is against the party's principles and has lost the party's confidence cannot be fired as it is against the regulations," she said.
She said it was therefore difficult to apply the sanctions, but if the MPs are absent with justification then this should be taken into account.