Chinotimba demands diplomatic passport

HARARE - Members of Parliament (MPs) have urged the new government led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to honour most of the undertakings made by the previous government.

Buhera South MP Joseph Chinotimba said they want the new president to make sure that all legislators get diplomatic passports.

"Our wish is that you take the request that we gave to you, that MPs should be treated like other MPs on diplomatic passports.

"Now that we have a new dispensation and you are also new, my point is all these MPs that you see, myself included, would want to do things that will make us the pride of the region. Everyone should marvel at the way we do things.

"We still want future MPs to be given diplomatic passports and that should start with us. The acting minister in charge of this matter should give us diplomatic passports."

Deputy speaker of the National Assembly said they are going to engage the incoming Foreign Affairs minister on the matter.

"That is going to be our first request to the incoming minister of Foreign Affairs. The passports are not issued by the presiding officer or anyone else. It is done by the minister of Foreign Affairs. This is what we are going to ask the substantive minister of Foreign Affairs about, our request as a legislature."

Norton Independent MP Temba Mliswa said Mnangagwa's government must fulfil promises made by Ignatius Chombo who was then Finance minister.

"You know that when we were in Victoria Falls with the then minister of Finance, Chombo, there were a lot of promises which were made in front of his permanent secretary…Mnangagwa met all the permanent secretaries this week and issued a statement that they must continue working. So, whatever he says cannot stop. We would want to know pertaining to our welfare, what has happened because being a minister or otherwise is not the issue.

"The permanent secretary is the chief executive officer, so we want to know all the promises he made to us. When are they going to be implemented? It is only a matter of Parliament getting in touch with the permanent secretaries to see, first of all the duty free certificates for the cars, our allowances that we were supposed to get and so forth.

"I am hoping that whatever has happened has not disturbed and cannot disturb what is due to us because the permanent secretaries are there as the chief executive officers. I would like us to know what Parliament has done to pursue the promises that were made.

In her response Marbel Chinomona said: "Even if everything was promised during the pre-budget seminar in Victoria Falls, it was not going to be done in a week or so. Even those permanent secretaries are still waiting to know whether they would remain in those ministries or not.

"It is up until yesterday when they were told that they are going to continue with their duties. Can we be patient enough for a week or so, but as presiding officers we are going to pursue whatever was promised?"