MPs must not be appointed Ministers – Brigitte Dzorgbenuku

Former presidential candidate of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Brigitte Dzorgbenuku says MPs should not be appointed as ministers of state.

This, she believes will ensure that MPs perform their mandate of checking the excesses of the Executive without fear.

Although these appointments were constitutional, she told Newsfile host Samson Lardy Anyenini that it is a hindrance to the growth and development of the state.

Making a contribution to the fourth edition of the Joy-Change Speakers series on Saturday, she said “Article 78(1) mandates the President to appoint Majority of his ministers from parliament. This means that more than half of all ministers and deputy ministers must be Members of Parliament.

“Every Member of Parliament in the ruling party, therefore, hopes to make the President’s “honour roll” for a ministerial appointment; checking the government against malfeasance cannot be their priority.

“Besides ministerial appointments, some Members of Parliament are also appointed as Board Chairs and Members of the Board of Directors of state-owned enterprises, corporations and other institutions thereby compromising the supervisory role of parliament,” she said.

She explained that these appointments had rendered the parliament ineffective in scrutinizing the activities of the Executive to guarantee the judicious application of the nation’s resources thereby making the fight against corruption very difficult.

The former Presidential candidate argued that this phenomenon has made the executive exert much power over the legislature even in the sitting positions of MPs.

Additionally, she said the appointment of MPs as ministers prevented them from representing their constituents and hindered the country from drawing from the rich experiences of experts.

Whilst calling for the constitutional amendment of article 76, she recommended that MP who wanted to be appointed as Minister must be willing to resign from their role as MP.

“It is our position that if a Member of Parliament is appointed as a Minister or accepts any other appointment by the President, then he/she must resign his seat before taking up the appointment. People seeking to become public officers must choose to either become part of the Legislature or the Executive, to avoid conflict of interest,” she added.