Parliament will
resume sitting, but briefly, tomorrow for the purposes of adjourning business
to a new date following the extension of the Covid-19 lockdown by a further two
weeks on Friday.
The Committee on Standing Rules and Orders, the senior
committee that oversees Parliamentary business, met on Thursday last week to
deliberate, among other things, the resumption of Parliament and possible
alternatives to facilitate its business in the event the lockdown continued in
one form or another.
“As a contingency measure, the Committee on Standing Rules
and Orders resolved that both Houses sit on Tuesday May 5, 2020, the date to
which they had adjourned, for the sake of formally adjourning to a date that
will be informed by the Government decision on the lockdown or otherwise,” said
Parliament in a statement.
“In this regard, and to comply with social distance
requirements, only MPs and senators from Harare, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland
West and Mashonaland Central and all ministers and deputies will attend the
session on Tuesday (today).
“And even then, only members from the four provinces who
are able to drive to Parliament and back to their constituencies on the same
day will be required to attend.”
Parliament has taken advantage of the lockdown to put in
place measures that will allow the institution to function without jeopardising
members and staff in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Legislators took an early break due to concerns arising
from the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, but there have been issues from
some that Parliament had not been actively responding to the disease.
Parliament said the outbreak heightened its resolve to
accelerate the use of technologies in its work.
“The institution is thus working on setting up facilities
for virtual meetings, where appropriate, without compromising the requirements
of the national constitution, law and the public interest,” it said.
“During the lockdown, legislators had been exercising their
representative role through educating their constituencies on the outbreak.
“Further they have been meeting with local Covid-19
taskforce structures highlighting the requirements of their constituencies.” Herald
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