President has no direct power to recall MPs, parliament says
The National Assembly said Article 48 of the Constitution does not explicitly mention the president's power to remove an appointed member of parliament, amid accusations of executive overreach regarding the ouster of former agriculture minister Mac Hengari last month.
Hengari was also sacked from Cabinet after he was arrested on 27 April on allegations of trying to bribe a woman who had accused him of rape and fathering her minor child.
Hengari, who denies the allegations, has not been charged over the rape allegations.
His lawyers are understood to have approached government attorneys demanding that he should be paid what he would have earned over the next five years as a member of parliament.
Members of parliament in the National Assembly earn N$620 000 annually, which would put the money demanded by Hengari at roughly N$3.1 million.
Article 48
Responding to a Namibian Sun media inquiry, the National Assembly’s senior public relations officer, Sakeus Kadhikwa, referenced Article 48 of the Namibian Constitution, which outlines the specific circumstances under which a member of the National Assembly may vacate their seat.
According to Kadhikwa, a seat in the National Assembly may become vacant if a member ceases to have the qualifications that rendered them eligible to be members, resigns in writing, or if the political party which nominated them informs the speaker that such a member no longer belongs to such a political party.
Kadhikwa also said a member may vacate if the National Assembly itself removes them according to its rules, or when a member is absent for ten consecutive sittings without approved leave.
“While Article 48 does not explicitly mention the president’s power to remove appointed members, it provides a framework for the vacation of seats,” Kadhikwa stated.
President exercised her Constitutional powers
The clarification comes amid growing public interest in the president's role and authority over the legislature.
Presidential spokesperson Alfredo Hengari denied any suggestion that the president acted outside the ambit of the law when she removed Hengari from parliament.
“The president enjoys certain powers in terms of Articles 32(3) and 32(5) of the Namibian Constitution, namely to appoint, inter alia, ministers, appoint eight members of the National Assembly by virtue of certain qualities,” he said.
The presidential press secretary added: “In the same vein, the president may, by the same powers vested in her in terms of the Constitution or any other law, remove such person by the same process.
"Therefore, in the circumstances, the president – after some consideration – simply exercised her powers in terms of the Constitution. The decision is therefore grounded in law and the constitution.”
Hengari was also sacked from Cabinet after he was arrested on 27 April on allegations of trying to bribe a woman who had accused him of rape and fathering her minor child.
Hengari, who denies the allegations, has not been charged over the rape allegations.
His lawyers are understood to have approached government attorneys demanding that he should be paid what he would have earned over the next five years as a member of parliament.
Members of parliament in the National Assembly earn N$620 000 annually, which would put the money demanded by Hengari at roughly N$3.1 million.
Article 48
Responding to a Namibian Sun media inquiry, the National Assembly’s senior public relations officer, Sakeus Kadhikwa, referenced Article 48 of the Namibian Constitution, which outlines the specific circumstances under which a member of the National Assembly may vacate their seat.
According to Kadhikwa, a seat in the National Assembly may become vacant if a member ceases to have the qualifications that rendered them eligible to be members, resigns in writing, or if the political party which nominated them informs the speaker that such a member no longer belongs to such a political party.
Kadhikwa also said a member may vacate if the National Assembly itself removes them according to its rules, or when a member is absent for ten consecutive sittings without approved leave.
“While Article 48 does not explicitly mention the president’s power to remove appointed members, it provides a framework for the vacation of seats,” Kadhikwa stated.
President exercised her Constitutional powers
The clarification comes amid growing public interest in the president's role and authority over the legislature.
Presidential spokesperson Alfredo Hengari denied any suggestion that the president acted outside the ambit of the law when she removed Hengari from parliament.
“The president enjoys certain powers in terms of Articles 32(3) and 32(5) of the Namibian Constitution, namely to appoint, inter alia, ministers, appoint eight members of the National Assembly by virtue of certain qualities,” he said.
The presidential press secretary added: “In the same vein, the president may, by the same powers vested in her in terms of the Constitution or any other law, remove such person by the same process.
"Therefore, in the circumstances, the president – after some consideration – simply exercised her powers in terms of the Constitution. The decision is therefore grounded in law and the constitution.”
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