It now emerges that a section of Members of Parliament is on a go-slow over alleged withheld pay.
The parliamentarians who have been boycotting house sittings for the last two months are protesting against the Parliamentary Service Commission’s (PSC) failure to pay their sitting and mileage allowances.
According to the Standard, others have had their foreign trips cancelled and pushed to next year over ‘exchequer issues’, the leading victim being house Minority Leader John Mbadi.
Mbadi who doubles up as the lawmaker for Suba South has since had his planned visit shifted to February next year.
The silent protest was partially revealed last week when Endebess lawmaker Robert Pukose took to the floor of the house to lament of the cash shortage troubling the house.
He added that the same has seen the Energy Committee halt its operations after members decided to keep off sittings due to lack of allowances.
“When we go for any committee retreat nowadays, we are not facilitated. Members are not given their sitting allowances,” Pukose who warned that lawmakers might resort to reconstituting the commission is quoted.
However, the allegations have been rubbished by National Assembly Clerk Michael Sialai, who maintained that the house is not facing any cash-crunch.
“We have adequate funds to fund all planned parliamentary activities, including committee operations. We have no pending travel nor sitting allowances, perhaps except those submitted this week which we are processing,’’ he is quoted.