By Landing Colley
MP for Serrekunda has urged fellow lawmakers to summon Vice president to explain about President’s declaration of State of Public Emergency.
Honorable Halifa Sallah in his move said “I humbly move that this August body summons the Vice President to come and answer three fundamental questions: Why the motion for an extension of the State of Public Emergency for period 45 days with effect from Wednesday, 1st July 2020 as per the order paper of 30th June 2020, was withdrawn?”
“Has a State of Public Emergency been declared since the National Assembly Commence Session? If so when was it declared and under what authority? What Emergency powers Regulations are currently in force and under what authority? How the executive computes time to determine the expiry date of each of the declaration of State of Public Emergency since 18th March, 2020?” he stated.
He noted that it would amount to dereliction if the assembly fails to summon the Office of the President to explain why the motion for extension of the State of Emergency was withdrawn and a Press Release issued on the declaration, while the National Assembly is still in Session.
According to him “Section 34 of the Constitution empowers the president to declare a State of Public Emergency and such declaration must have expiration date in which Subsection 2 indicates the expiration period of the declaration of Public Emergency.”
He added further that “A declaration made under this section shall lapse at the expiration of a period of seven days, or if the National Assembly is not in session then twenty- one days, beginning on the day on which the Proclamation is publish in the Gazette unless, before the expiration of that period, it has been approved by a resolution of the National Assembly supported by the votes of not less than two-thirds of all the members thereof.”
