RULING BY THE HON MADAM SPEAKER ON A POINT OF ORDER RAISED BY MR S KAMPYONGO MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR SHIWANG’ANDU PARLIAMENTARY CONSTITUENCY, AGAINST HON G G NKOMBO, MP, MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT, ON WHETHER HE WAS IN ORDER TO RAISE A POINT OF ORDER WITHOUT CITING THE RELEVANTSTANDING ORDER, LAW ON PRIVILEGE OF MEMBERS, RULE OF PROCEDURE OR PRACTICEALLEGED TO HAVE BEEN BREACHED

 

Hon Members, the House will recall that on Tuesday, 5thOctober, 2021, when the House was considering a Ministerial Statement given by Hon S Musokotwane, Minister of Finance and National Planning, on the State of the Economy and MrA Mumba,Member of Parliament for Kantanshi Parliamentary Constituency, was on the floor,Mr SKampyongo, Member of Parliament for Shiwang’andu Parliamentary Constituency, raised a Point of Order.  In thePoint of Order,he inquired whether the House was in Order to ignore the rule that aMember should cite the Standing Order, law on privilege of Members, rule of procedure or practice breached when raising a Point of Order.

Hon Members, in my immediate response, I reserved my ruling in order to study the matter, particularly since two points of order were raised in sequence. I have since studied the matter and will now render my ruling. 

 

I wish to begin by giving a background to what gave rise to Mr S Kampyongo, MP’s Point of Order.As you may recall, after the Hon Minister of Finance and National Planning had presented the Ministerial Statement on the State of the Economy, Mr A Mumba, MP,in seeking clarification from the Hon Minister, made reference to an event which occurred in 2010, when Hon S Musokotwane, MP, was Minister of Finance. As a result, Hon G GNkombo, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, raised a Point of Order against Mr A Mumba, MP, asking whether it was in order for the Member to make reference to the Hon Minister of Finance and National Planning's performance in 2010, when the rules of the House did not permit this. I ruled on the matter explaining that the rules were clear that Members should not debate themselves.Mr S Kampyongo, MP, then raisedhis Point of Orderasking if the House was in Order to ignore the rule that when raising a point of order a Member must cite the Standing Order, law on privilege of Members, rule of procedure or practice that had been breached.

Hon Members, from the background that I have just given, the following is evident:

 

(i) that Mr S Kampyongo, MP’s Point of Order was based on Hon G GNkombo, MP’s Point of Order and, therefore, was a point of order on another point of order; and

(ii) that the Point of Order was based on a point of order on which I had already ruled.

 

Hon Members, Standing Order 132 sets out the admissibility criteria for Points of Order.  Standing Order 132(1) states:

 

“132 (1) A Point of Order may be admissible if-

 

(d) It is not raised against a decision of the presiding officer.”

 

Further, Standing Order 132 (2) (a) specifically provides as follows:

 

“132 (2) A Member shall not raise a Point of Order-

(a) on another Point of Order.”

 

Hon Members, it is clear that Hon Kampyongo’s Point of Order was a point of order on another point of order.  Additionally, it was raised on a matter I had already ruled on.  In view of this, it breached the admissibility criteria I have just outlined.  The Point of Orderwas, therefore, inadmissible.

 

I wish to seize this opportunity to remind Hon Members to clearly cite the rule, law, privilege, practice or procedure breached whenever they raise a Point of Order.

 

I thank you.

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