Parliament sessions to start Tuesday as three bills await deliberations
Dodoma. Parliament sessions are expected to restart on Tuesday September 3, 2019 as three bills are waiting deliberations and approval from the legislative organ.
According to a mini-timetable, the meetings will start with a questions-and-answer session to be followed by passing a resolution to congratulate President John Magufuli for his recent appoint as the chairman of the Sothern African Development Cooperation (Sadc).
The two-week sessions will also see the Parliament deliberating and possibly passing three bills which were tabled in June this year for first reading.
These include the e-Government Bill 2019 which seeks to establish the e-Government Authority which will coordinate, oversee and promote electronic government initiatives and enforce policies, regulations, laws, standards and guidelines related to public institutions.
Other bills include the Written Laws (Miscellaneous Amendments) number four and five of 2019 which seek to make changes in different laws.
The Written Laws (Miscellaneous Amendments) bill number four outlines 11 laws including the Criminal Procedure Act (Cap 20) which introduces plea bargaining system into Tanzania’s justice system.
The plea bargaining system allows the prosecutor and accused to agree by the latter pleading guilty to certain charges in return for some concessions from the prosecutor which may lead to lenient sentence or withdrawal of other counts.
The move is targeted at reducing case backlogs which delay justice delivery.
The bill also intends to amend the Advocates Act by introducing a clause that restricts state attorneys and other state law officers from practicing the profession outside their government job.
The Written Laws (Miscellaneous Amendments) bill number five seeks to amend seven laws including the Electronic and Postal Communications Act by making Sim card registration mandatory for whoever uses it.
