Malawi says that she has a right or is entitled to raise a point of order as an MP in the South African Parliament
The following article is not intended to be a legal opinion or interpretation of the law. It’s simply my understanding of the situation and how I would interpret it if I were representing the member concerned in court. For the purposes of this article, let’s assume that there was no fraud involved.
The MP concerned, who is now a member of the African EFF, says that she was elected from a ward in Malawi.
She said her constituents had been complaining about water and electricity shortages in their area since the start of this year and they felt that they were not being represented by their councillor.
She claim that the Julius malema and the EFF’s Constitution gives you the right to be an MP anywhere the Republic of South Africa parliament .
However, this is not what your own Constitution states:
I do not see anything written here about people from Malawi having any rights to speak in another country’s Parliament! The speaker is duty bound to take the point of order. However, it is only upon recognition by the speaker that a member can raise a point of order.
The speaker has discretion in determining whether or not to call on you for your point of order. If you feel that your point of order has been ignored, you may raise either another one or move a motion to adjourn until another day as provided for under Rule 70(5)(g).
There are certain rules that need to be adhered to in Parliament by members as well as non-members. The following are some of these rules:
Rule 1 – To sit and give honourable Members the opportunity to speak on behalf of their constituents;
Rule 2 – To avoid any language which might infringe upon the dignity of Parliament or bring it into disrepute;
Rule 3 – To respect all points of order raised by other Members during debates;
Rule 4 – Not to interrupt a speaker if he/she is addressing another Member;
The following are some examples of points of order raised by foreign members who were not aware that they had no right to raise them:
Conclusion
It is important that the rules of Parliament are adhered to by all those who are there. This is to ensure that the rules are not circumvented, as this would have a negative impact on the effectiveness of our democracy.
