By Enyichukwu Enemanna
At least 17 opposition members of the Zambian Parliament have been suspended from legislative activities for 30 days, the Speaker Nelly Mutti has announced.
The lawmakers have been accused of disrupting the business of the House, an incident that occurred last week.
They ignored an order to leave the plenary after they accused the Speaker of denying them an opportunity to speak.
While suspending them on Tuesday, Speaker Mutti described the MPs’ behaviour as unparliamentary and a breach of the House’s decorum and integrity.
Ms Mutti said that lawlessness should not be confused with freedom of expression, adding that defying the Speaker’s instruction amounted to an assault on Zambia’s constitutional democracy.
Leader of the opposition in parliament, MP Brian Mundubile was among those suspended.
The members of the parliament accused the ruling party of attempts to push for some constitutional changes in their absence.
A section of opposition MPs have reportedly submitted a petition for the removal of the Speaker for alleged mismanagement of parliamentary affairs.
