By KAIKO NAMUSA-
ATTORNEY General Musa Mwenye is within his constitutional mandate to discharge his duties despite not being sworn-in by President Michael Sata, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Mkhondo Lungu has said.
Mr Lungu said this in Parliament yesterday when he passed a ruling from a point of order raised by UPND Choma Central Member of Parliament (MP) Cornelius Mweetwa who wanted to know whether Mr Mwenye was legally discharging his duties.
Mr Lungu explained that the office of the Attorney General was one of those that the occupant could started duties without waiting to be sworn-in unlike other offices such as the Vice-President’s.
“Musa Mwenye was appointed by President Sata and his appointment was ratified by Parliament and, according to the Constitution, he is legally discharging his duties and his office does not wait for one to be sworn-in in order to discharge his duties and so he is legally performing his duties,” Mr Lungu said.
During the question by Mr Mweetwa, Mr Lungu ordered Finance Deputy Minister Keith Mukata to leave the House after he gestured and made commentaries not in conformity with parliamentary etiquette.
“There has to be order in the House, can you (Mukata) leave the House,” Mr Lungu ordered.
Meanwhile, Justice Minister Wynter Kabimba informed the House that there was no legal action against Zambia over the perceived abrogation to honour the 1964 Barotseland Agreement.
Mr Kabimba was responding to a question by UPND Lukulu West Member of Parliament (MP) Misheck Mutelo who wanted to know whether there was legal action anywhere in the world between the Barotse Royal Establishment and the Government over the Barotseland Agreement of 1964.
“The Zambian Government has not received any legal action or I am not aware of any legal action by the Barotse Royal Establishment. I am sure we haven’t received any summons on the issue,” Mr Kabimba said.
Mr Kabimba added that any matter concerning the breach of law would be dealt with by the police or the National Prosecutions Authority.
This was in response to Mr Mweetwa who wanted to know whether the Government was making efforts to ensure the matter regarding the Barotseland Agreement was resolved amicably.
Mr Kabimba said the Government was not underplaying the Barotseland Agreement issue, that was why President Sata had established a commission of inquiry on the matter and the findings would be made known as soon as Cabinet considered them.
Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda also told Parliament that the Government had released K87.3 million of the K210 million allocated to the Constituency Development Fund for 2014.
Mr Chikwanda said in a ministerial statement that the disbursement reflected 42 per cent of the K210 million allocated to the Fund, leaving a balance of K122.6 million which was due to be released by the end of September this year.