MPs demand Mphoko attends Parliament

Members of Parliament were yesterday up in arms with Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko for failing to attend Parliament in violation of the Constitution and Parliamentary rules.

This was after MDC-T chief whip Innocent Gonese raised a point of order with the Speaker of the National Assembly Jacob Mudenda over Mphoko's constant failure to turn up in both Houses as stipulated in Section 107 of the Constitution and Order 47 of Parliamentary Standing Rules and Orders (SROs).

According to these provisions, all ministers and VPs are obliged to attend Parliament for purposes of answering questions, but we now have a situation whereby one of the VPs (Mphoko) has never set foot in this House, Gonese said.

"May VP Emmerson Mnangagwa tell us whether he has apprised his counterpart on provisions of the Standing Orders and the Constitution?" Opposition MPs then shouted that Mphoko needed a training workshop.

Mnangagwa and Mudenda almost clashed on whose responsibility it was to remind Mphoko that he also needed to attend Parliament.