Pressure is mounting on lawmakers to attend parliamentary proceedings after Leader of the House Jappie Mhango backed Speaker Sameer Suleman’s warning that MPs who skip parliamentary business without valid reasons will face disciplinary action.
The Speaker issued the warning on Tuesday as the National Assembly opened its four-week sitting, which is scheduled to run until July 31.
In his opening address, Suleman expressed concern over persistent absenteeism during committee and plenary meetings despite some members receiving allowances to attend, warning that his office would take appropriate action against offenders.
Speaking to journalists after the House convened, Mhango said the Business Committee had extensively discussed the issue and agreed that the Speaker was justified in taking a firmer position to curb the growing trend, saying stricter enforcement of attendance rules is necessary to safeguard the work of Parliament.
“It is very correct that during the Business Committee the issue of members’ absenteeism was raised. It was discussed thoroughly, and it was agreed that should this trend continue, the Speaker will have to put in place some very stringent measures,” said Mhango.
He noted that Parliament’s Standing Orders already provide for sanctions against lawmakers who fail to attend sittings without valid reasons, including deductions from their allowances. “If people don’t report for Parliament for no good reasons at all, or they don’t give reasons, they should be losing part of their allowances,” he said.
Mhango said legislators have a constitutional responsibility to represent Malawians whenever Parliament is in session, stressing that attendance is essential to ensuring meaningful debate on national issues.
“This is the House where we discuss issues that affect Malawians, and we expect all of us, being people’s representatives, to be in this House doing this work. After all, we don’t meet as often, so we don’t see reasons why members should stay away,” he said.
Suleman also directed members unable to attend parliamentary business for legitimate reasons to formally seek leave of absence through their respective party whips. He further urged party whips to closely monitor attendance and report members who fail to comply with the rules to enable appropriate action.
Beyond attendance, the Speaker announced tighter controls on parliamentary travel and committee operations, saying only budgeted parliamentary trips would be approved in line with the government’s austerity measures.
He also instructed committees to obtain prior approval from his office before engaging external stakeholders or organising field activities, saying the move is intended to strengthen accountability, institutional discipline and the orderly conduct of parliamentary business.
