Tjirare accuses National Assembly of defying court order
‘There is no reason for further delay’
The PDM lawmaker says parliament is legally bound to pay the money owed to the six PDM members who were reinstated after a successful court battle.
Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) lawmaker Charmaine Tjirare has accused the National Assembly of ignoring judicial directives and delaying discussions on the issue of the fair compensation of some lawmakers.
After the 2019 elections, six PDM members, including Tjirare, were removed from the party's list of elected representatives. In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled their removal unconstitutional and ordered their reinstatement. The court emphasised upholding the gazetted candidate list and left implementation of the court order in the hands of the National Assembly.
Disputes over their back-pay have, however, persisted.
Tjirare and her colleagues argue they should be compensated for the period of their unlawful exclusion, while the National Assembly claims the responsibility lies with PDM.
Mounting frustration
On 19 February, Tjirare submitted a motion in parliament to address the matter, but, she said this week, by 21 February it had been omitted from the order paper and minutes.
“This oversight is frustrating, especially considering the situation we’ve been dealing with since 2020,” she told this publication yesterday.
“The motion in question is important, and its removal from the order paper and failure to record it in the minutes can only mean one thing – corruption."
Tjirare underlined that parliament is “supposed to be the house where laws of this country are made and upheld, yet they are disregarding and misusing the house for their corrupt deeds. How do you remove a notice that seeks to make things right? Things that the courts have already told them to do. On what grounds did they remove it?”
Unlawful exclusion
She underlined that the matter at hand is not just about the motion “but about the funds owed to legitimate members of parliament who were unlawfully excluded from entering parliament in 2020.”
The affected members are seeking close to N$10 million in compensation for lost salaries and benefits from March 2020 to May 2022.
“The court in the case of Tjirare vs ECN and others has already made a clear directive that parliament is responsible for recovering those funds, and it is high time they take action to comply with the court’s ruling. I don’t know what parliament is playing here," Tjirare said.
Tjirare insisted her concern is enforcing the court’s ruling. She maintained that parliament must act since the court has already ruled in their favour.
"Parliament must recover and pay what is owed to us. Party funding is dispatched by parliament, it isn't rocket science. The National Assembly is our paymaster, not PDM. They must correct this mistake," she said.
"They are legally bound to recover the funds and compensate us. There is no reason for further delay," she added.
After the 2019 elections, six PDM members, including Tjirare, were removed from the party's list of elected representatives. In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled their removal unconstitutional and ordered their reinstatement. The court emphasised upholding the gazetted candidate list and left implementation of the court order in the hands of the National Assembly.
Disputes over their back-pay have, however, persisted.
Tjirare and her colleagues argue they should be compensated for the period of their unlawful exclusion, while the National Assembly claims the responsibility lies with PDM.
Mounting frustration
On 19 February, Tjirare submitted a motion in parliament to address the matter, but, she said this week, by 21 February it had been omitted from the order paper and minutes.
“This oversight is frustrating, especially considering the situation we’ve been dealing with since 2020,” she told this publication yesterday.
“The motion in question is important, and its removal from the order paper and failure to record it in the minutes can only mean one thing – corruption."
Tjirare underlined that parliament is “supposed to be the house where laws of this country are made and upheld, yet they are disregarding and misusing the house for their corrupt deeds. How do you remove a notice that seeks to make things right? Things that the courts have already told them to do. On what grounds did they remove it?”
Unlawful exclusion
She underlined that the matter at hand is not just about the motion “but about the funds owed to legitimate members of parliament who were unlawfully excluded from entering parliament in 2020.”
The affected members are seeking close to N$10 million in compensation for lost salaries and benefits from March 2020 to May 2022.
“The court in the case of Tjirare vs ECN and others has already made a clear directive that parliament is responsible for recovering those funds, and it is high time they take action to comply with the court’s ruling. I don’t know what parliament is playing here," Tjirare said.
Tjirare insisted her concern is enforcing the court’s ruling. She maintained that parliament must act since the court has already ruled in their favour.
"Parliament must recover and pay what is owed to us. Party funding is dispatched by parliament, it isn't rocket science. The National Assembly is our paymaster, not PDM. They must correct this mistake," she said.
"They are legally bound to recover the funds and compensate us. There is no reason for further delay," she added.
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article