A few members of the Northern Bahr el Ghazal State Legislative
Assembly have declined a recess, stating that there are unresolved matters that
demand the house's attention.
The move comes after the Speaker of Parliament, Hon.
Achol William Amoi, closed the assembly for recess on Tuesday.
However, the parliamentarians claim that the
decision-making process did not follow the correct procedures.
According to them, the closure of the house for recess is
usually presided over by the state governor after the majority of the members
accept the motion.
They say some of the pending issues that require
attention include the seasonal cattle migration policy and the summons of the
finance and education ministers.
“The decision for recess doesn’t come from the speaker
alone. It goes through the members for discussion,” said Hon. Yel Lual Angong, on
behalf of the members of parliament.
“In our Conduct of business, it says when the members
have some issues to discuss, then the recess should be postponed and that
didn’t happen.”
In response, the chairperson of the information committee
says the decision by the speaker was in the right place.
According to him, the members of parliament spent five
months sitting in November last year.
Hon. Garang Kuol Mabior told Akol Yam FM that the
decision is within Code of Business, which gives the speaker the power to
announce recess after three months of sitting:
“We have spent enough time since November up to now. It
is a great achievement for the house. As for the closure, it is provided for
within the Conduct of Business that gives powers to the speaker to announce
recess,” Hon. Garang argued.
He added that, once the assembly resumes sitting, they
will prioritize the pending tasks.