DILI, 12 april 2024 (TATOLI) – In an extraordinary plenary session, on friday, the National Parliament (PN) approved the government’s request to discuss the proposed amendment to the anti-corruption law as a matter of urgency. The vote resulted in the removal of the requirement that at least three-quarters of sitting MPs be present to elect or dismiss the Commissioner of the Anti-Corruption Commission (CAC) by an absolute majority.
Despite the fact that the FRETILIN and PLP benches didn’t take part in the vote because they didn’t agree with the request for urgency to schedule a discussion of the amendment to the CAC law, the vote was passed with 37 votes in favor, zero against and zero abstentions.
According to the head of the FRETILIN bench, Aniceto Guterres, alteration of the law does not strengthen the democratic rule of law; on the contrary, it “consolidates personal power”, adding that the change to the CAC law, as proposed, “represents a step backwards.”
The president of the PLP, Maria Angelina Sarmento, said that the changes to the law weaken the actions of the CAC.
“The opposition benches, FRETILIN and the PLP, cannot be involved in a decision that, in our view, violates the legal principles that guarantee the existence of a democratic rule of law,” she concluded.
Journalist: Camilio de Sousa
Editor: Filomeno Martins
