Mliswa nearly faints in Parliament

Norton member of parliament Temba Mliswa caused a stir in the chambers on Wednesday when he  claimed that he nearly fainted   when he saw Foreign Affairs minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi in the august house.

Mumbengegwi made a rare appearance in parliament.

"Mr. Speaker Sir, I must say when I walked into Parliament, I nearly fainted when I saw the Hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs.  True to your word, he is here and we would like to welcome him to Parliament, especially today when the xenophobia debate has been moved – [HON. MEMBERS:  Hear, hear.]" said Mliswa as recorded by the parliamentary Hansard.

However, speaker of parliament Jacob Mudenda came to Mumbengegwi's rescue chastising Mliswa saying " Hon. Mliswa, this matter was discussed yesterday and I do not think there is any point in trying to embarrass the Minister.  Your point of order does not stand".

Opposition legislators routinely complain that ministers skip parliamentary sessions especially on Wednesday during question and answer sessions.

Last year, opposition members of Parliament  demanded that ministers absconding Parliamentary sessions be charged with contempt of court, citing  Mumbengegwi as the most delinquent.