Parliament says fuel shortage has caused many Members of Parliament (MPs) to be absent from Parliament in Lilongwe where about 40 out of 193 MPs have showed up today.
Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament Aisha Adams said this on Friday morning when some members demanded for a roll call as most of the seats were empty.
The request for a roll call came after members noticed that out of 193 members, only less than 40 were present when deliberations were starting.
The request came two days after similar roll call was made on Wednesday where only 53 Members of Parliament were present during the time the roll call was made.
Adams said she is aware of some situations which are making some members to come late and even absent during Parliament proceedings.
“I am aware that fuel shortage is one of the reasons contributing to the absenteeism of some members as they spend time in long queues in filing stations,” she said.
She, however, said that she knows that there are some of members who do not attend Parliament sessions for their own reasons.
There has been a concern by the general public on the absenteeism of most Members of Parliament during deliberations.
A snap visit in some of the fuel filing stations in Lilongwe this morning has shown that availability of fuel has improved.
