Namalomba questions procedures over Bill tabling

Member of Parliament for Mangochi South West Shadric Namalomba has faulted parliamentary procedures behind the tabling of Financial Services Amendment Bill.

According to Namalomba, the Private Member`s Bill which was brought in the House by his Dowa West counterpart Ephraim Abel Kayembe, was earlier proposed by him after submitting a motion on the same.

Whilst in agreement with contents of the Bill, Namalomba has told Yoneco FM that he suspects communication breakdown within parliament secretariat.

“The truth of the matter is that I submitted a motion, I was told that your motion should be accompanied by a draft Bill to that extent even Parliament itself gave the legal secretariat of parliament to draft a Bill and they drafted the Bill,” he said.

“And I kept on pushing, where is that Bill and I have that correspondence between me and secretariat, they kept assuring me that the motion and the Bill be submitted to the Business Committee.”

He added that he is disappointed with processes that have driven the Bill to be presented in the Chamber.

“I went to the US that weekend, thereafter another member brought it to the House, I must also state that I am not against the contests of the Bill,” Namalomba said.

“I am raising an issue of procedure, is this how we should be transacting business in the House? I am totally for contents of the Bill, we need to protect the consumers, consumers are suffering yes, but it is the process of bringing the Bill in the House when a member has already originated it.”

The Bill seeks to regulate the interest rates on loans obtained from the banks and other financial lending institutions which, according to Kayembe, have resulted in failure by most citizens to service the loans and some cases leading to seizure of their property.

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