Luanda: The first secretary of the National Assembly (AN), Manuel Dembo, stated this Thursday that the opposition UNITA Parliamentary Group made unfounded accusations against the institutional integrity of the House of Laws, alleging that the parliament Speaker had blocked 16 requests for hearings of different ministers of the Angolan government.
According to Angola Press News Agency, in a press conference, the MP reported that, on Wednesday, the UNITA Parliamentary Group held a similar meeting, where it claimed that 'the deputies, requested the Speaker of the National Assembly to carry out the due procedural process for holding several parliamentary hearings of ministers'.
They also argued, at another time, that 'the exercise of the right to propose parliamentary hearings by deputies through their Parliamentary Group does not invalidate or prevent, in any way, the requested hearing from being organized and carried out by the Specialized Working Committees in accordance with the law'.
Ant³nio Dembo highlighted a misunderstanding among UNITA parliamentarians, stating that they are confusing the previous and current internal regulations of the National Assembly. Currently, the competence for organizing hearings lies only with the Specialized Working Committees and not with the Parliamentary Groups.
The deputy clarified that, according to article 167 of the current Rules of Procedure, it is the responsibility of the Specialized Working Committees to hold parliamentary hearings, request information from the public administration, and visit any bodies and entities to verify compliance with the laws and resolutions of the National Assembly, with the authorization of the Speaker.
Based on the aforementioned rule, he noted, 'There is no doubt that only the Specialized Working Committees can request information from public administration bodies, as well as visit any bodies and entities, and not the Parliamentary Groups.'
The MP added that all monitoring actions carried out by the Specialized Working Committees require prior consultation between the Speaker of the National Assembly and the Executive.
Dembo regretted that UNITA continues to base its political action legally on the spirit of the now repealed Rules of Procedure, which, in the final part of paragraph 1 of article 269, extended the power of oversight to the Parliamentary Groups.
The MP explained that the power of control and oversight of the National Assembly is defined by the Constitution of the Republic of Angola and regulated by the Rules of Procedure. It is guided, among others, by the principle of separation and interdependence of functions between sovereign bodies, and by the principles of civility, courtesy, and institutional cooperation between deputies, government officials, and other leaders.
Dembo stressed that the National Assembly has carried out, through the Specialized Working Committees, hearings and fact-finding visits to public institutions and provinces with the due authorization of the Speaker.
As part of the parliamentary oversight action, in May, UNITA deputies visited the Luanda Central Morgue, adjacent to the Josina Machel Hospital, which is part of the Luanda Provincial Government, without prior authorization from the Speaker of the National Assembly.
