Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Tsitsi Gezi has urged ministers and their deputies to take Parliament business seriously by attenting the House prepared with responses to questions.
Parliamentarians were riled when Industry and Commerce minister Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu left the House before answering a long-standing question, while his deputy Raj Modi also did not have answers.
This comes after Hwange East lawmaker Joseph Bonda asked Ndlovu to inform the House whether there are any community share ownership trusts in the Hwange mining area and if so, to provide the list of such trusts.
Modi then asked to respond to the question the following week, much to the disapproval of members of the House, with Dzivarasekwa MP Edwin Mushoriwa expressing dismay at the lack of preparedness by the minister and his deputy.
“I am not so sure what needs to be done. The Minister of Industry, Hon Ndlovu, was here, the deputy minister is here and is telling us that he does not have the answer on a question that the ministry was given notice to long back. I have also noticed that the Minister of Health has left as well,” Mushoriwa said.
“I am not sure if this does not require these ministers to be sanctioned by Parliament. I think they are not taking Parliament business seriously. The deputy minister did not even apologise to this House.”
Gezi concurred with Mushoriwa’s point of order and urged ministers and their deputies to take Parliament business seriously.
Modi apologised and asked to respond to the question the following week.
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