National Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act (Chapter 2:04)
Malawi
National Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act
Chapter 2:04
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Commenced on 13 February 1957
- [This is the version of this document at 31 December 2014 and includes any amendments published up to 31 December 2017.]
- [Note: This version of the Act was revised and consolidated in the Fourth Revised Edition of the Laws of Malawi (L.R.O. 1/2015), by the Solicitor General and Secretary for Justice under the authority of the Revision of the Laws Act.]
This Act may be cited as the National Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—“Assembly” means National Assembly of Malawi;“Clerk” means the Clerk of the National Assembly;“committee” means any standing, sessional, select or other committee of the Assembly;“journals” means the minutes of the Assembly or the official record of the votes and proceedings thereof;“member” means any member of the Assembly;“officer of the Assembly” means the Clerk or any other officer or person acting within the precincts of the Assembly, other than when serving a summons under section 10 (3), under the orders of the Speaker, and includes any police officer on duty within the precincts of the Assembly;“police officer” has the same meaning as in the Police Act;[Cap. 13:01]“precincts of the Assembly” means the chamber and offices of the Assembly and the galleries and places provided for the use or accommodation of strangers, members of the public and representatives of the press, and includes, while the Assembly is sitting, and subject to any exceptions made by direction of the Speaker, the entire building in which the chamber of the Assembly is situated, and any forecourt, yard, garden, enclosure or open space adjoining or appertaining to such building and used or provided for the purposes of the Assembly;“Speaker” means the Speaker of the Assembly and includes any other member when such other member is presiding at a meeting of the Assembly;“Standing Orders” means the Standing Orders of the Assembly for the time being in force;“stranger” means any person other than a member or an officer of the Assembly. No civil or criminal proceedings may be instituted against any member for words spoken before, or written in a report to, the Assembly or to a committee, or by reason of any matter or thing so brought by him by petition, Bill, motion or otherwise. No member shall be liable to arrest—(a)for any civil debt whilst going to, attending at or returning from a sitting of the Assembly or any committee;(b)within the precincts of the Assembly while the Assembly or a committee is sitting, for any criminal offence without the consent of the Speaker. No process issued by any court in the exercise of its jurisdiction shall be served or executed within the precincts of the Assembly while the Assembly is sitting or through the Speaker, the Clerk or any officer of the Assembly. No stranger shall be entitled, as of right, to enter or to remain within the precincts of the Assembly. The Speaker may at any time order any stranger to withdraw from the precincts of the Assembly. The Assembly or any committee may, subject to section 14 and section 16, order any person to attend before the Assembly or before such committee and to give evidence or to produce any paper, book, record or document in the possession or under the control of such person. The Assembly or any committee empowered to order the attendance of witnesses may require that any facts, matters and things relating to the subject of inquiry before the Assembly or such committee be verified or otherwise ascertained by the oral examination of witnesses, and may cause any such witnesses to be examined upon oath, which the Clerk or the chairman of the committee or other person specially appointed for that purpose by the Assembly or by such committee is hereby authorized to administer. Where at any time any question arises in the Assembly or in a committee in regard to—(a)the right or power of the Assembly or a committee to hear, admit or receive oral evidence; or(b)the right or power of the Assembly or a committee to peruse or examine any paper, book, record or document or to summon, direct or call upon any person to produce any paper, book, record or document before the Assembly or committee; or(c)the right or privilege of any person (including a member of the Assembly or committee) to refuse to produce any paper, book, record or document or to lay any paper, book, record or document before the Assembly or committee,that question shall, subject to the preceding provisions of this Act, and except in so far as express provision is made in those provisions for the determination of that question, be determined in accordance with the usage and practice of the Commons House of Parliament of the United Kingdom. Any proceedings before the Assembly or a committee thereof at which any person gives evidence or produces any paper, book, record or document, shall be deemed to be judicial proceedings for the purposes of sections 105, 109,110 and 112 of the Penal Code.[Cap. 7:01] Any person who—(a)being a stranger enters or attempts to enter the precincts of the Assembly in contravention of any order of the Speaker; or(b)being a stranger fails or refuses to withdraw from the precincts of the Assembly when ordered to withdraw therefrom by the Speaker; or(c)being a stranger contravenes any order made under this Act by the Speaker regulating the admittance of strangers to the precincts of the Assembly or any rule made by the Speaker under the Standing Orders; or(d)attends any sitting of the Assembly as the representative of any journal after the general permission granted under any order made under this Act or under the Standing Orders to the representative or representatives of that journal has been revoked,shall be liable to a fine of £25 and to imprisonment for three months. Any person who—(a)disobeys any order made by the Assembly or a committee for attendance or for production of papers, books, documents or records, unless such attendance or production be excused as hereinbefore provided; or(b)refuses to be examined before, or to answer any lawful and relevant question put by the Assembly or a committee, unless such refusal be excused as hereinbefore provided; or(c)offers to any member or officer of the Assembly any bribe, in order to influence him in his conduct as such member or officer, or offers to any member or officer of the Assembly any fee, compensation, gift or reward for or in respect of the promotion of or opposition to any Bill of matter submitted to or intended to be submitted to the Assembly or any committee; or(d)assaults, obstructs, molests or insults any member coming to, being within, or going from the precincts of the Assembly, or endeavours to compel any member by force, insult or menace to declare himself in favour of or against any proposition or matter pending in or expected to be brought before the Assembly or any committee; or(e)assaults, molests, insults, resists or obstructs any officer of the Assembly while in the execution of his duty or while proceeding to or from the Assembly knowing or having reasonable grounds for believing him to be such an officer; or(f)creates or joins in any disturbance which interrupts or is likely to interrupt the proceedings of the Assembly or any committee while the Assembly or such committee is sitting; or(g)presents to the Assembly or a committee any false, untrue, fabricated or falsified document with intent to deceive the Assembly or such committee; or(h)utters or publishes any false or scandalous slander or libel on the Assembly or upon any member in his capacity as such; or(i)attempts, directly or indirectly, by fraud, or by threats or intimidation of any kind, to influence a member in his vote, opinion, judgment or action, upon any question arising in the Assembly or in a committee, or to induce him to absent himself from the Assembly or any committee; or(j)threatens, assaults or insults a member or an officer of the Assembly on account of his conduct as such member or officer; or(k)gives false evidence (in the case of witnesses not examined on oath), prevarication or other misconduct as a witness before the Assembly or a committee; or(l)destroys documents which have been ordered to be produced before the Assembly or a committee; or(m)endeavours, directly or indirectly, to deter or hinder any person from appearing or giving evidence before the Assembly or a committee; or(n)tampers with a witness in regard to evidence to be given by him before the Assembly or a committee; or(o)threatens or in any way punishes, damnifies or injures or attempts to punish, damnify or injure any person for having given evidence before the Assembly or a committee, or on account of the evidence which he has given before the Assembly or a committee; or(p)publishes any evidence taken by, or document presented to, a committee where such evidence has been taken with closed doors, or where its publication has been expressly prohibited by the Assembly or the committee,shall be liable to a fine of £200 and to imprisonment for two years. Any member who accepts or agrees to accept or obtains or attempts to obtain for himself or for any other person any bribe, fee, compensation, reward or benefit of any kind for speaking, voting or acting as such member or for refraining from so speaking, voting or acting or on account of his having so spoken, voted or acted or having so refrained shall be liable on conviction before the High Court to a fine of £200 and to imprisonment for two years. Subject to this Act, a copy of the Journals of the Commons House of Parliament of the United Kingdom printed or purporting to be printed by the order or by the Printer of the Commons House aforesaid shall be received as prima facie evidence without proof of its being such copy upon any inquiry touching the privileges, immunities and powers of the Assembly or of any member thereof. Upon any inquiry touching the privileges, immunities and powers of the Assembly or of any member, any copy of the journals printed or purporting to be printed by the Government Printer shall be admitted as prima facie evidence of such journals in all courts and places without any proof being given that such copy was so printed. Any person who shall print or cause to be printed a copy of any Act now or hereafter in force, or a copy of any report, paper, minutes or votes and proceedings of the Assembly as purporting to have been printed by the Government Printer or by order or under the authority of the Assembly or by order or under the authority of the Speaker, and the same is not so printed, or shall tender in evidence any such copy as purporting to be so printed knowing that the same was not so printed, shall be liable to a fine of £200 and to imprisonment for three years. Any person, being a defendant in any civil or criminal proceedings instituted for or on account or in respect of the publication by such person or by his servant, by order or under the authority of the Assembly, of any reports, papers, minutes, votes and proceedings, may, on giving to the plaintiff or prosecutor, as the case may be, twenty-four hours ’ written notice of his intention, bring before the court in which such civil or criminal proceedings are being held a certificate under the hand of the Speaker stating that the reports, papers, minutes, votes and proceedings in respect whereof such civil or criminal proceedings have been instituted were published by such person or by his servant by order or under the authority of the Assembly together with an affidavit verifying such certificate, and such court shall thereupon immediately stay such civil or criminal proceedings and the same and every process issued therein shall be deemed to be finally determined. In any civil proceedings instituted for publishing any report or summary of or any extract from or abstract of any report, paper, minutes, votes and proceedings of the Assembly, if the court is satisfied that such report, summary, extract or abstract was published in good faith and without malice, judgment shall be entered for the defendant. Neither the Speaker, nor any officer of the Assembly, shall be subject to the jurisdiction of any court in respect of the exercise of any power conferred on or vested in the Speaker or such officer by or under this Act. Every officer of the Assembly shall, for the purposes of this Act and of the application of the provisions of the criminal law, have all the powers and enjoy all the privileges of a police officer. An Officer of the Assembly may arrest without warrant—(a)any person who commits any offence contrary to section 18 or 19 in his presence;(b)any person within the precincts of the Assembly whom he reasonably suspects of having committed, or being about to commit, an offence contrary to either of the said sections. No prosecution for an offence under this Act shall be instituted except with the written sanction of the Director of Public Prosecutions. The President may make Rules prescribing anything which, under this Act, may be or is to be prescribed.Part I – Short title and interpretation
1. Short title
2. Interpretation
Part II – Privileges and immunities
3. Immunity from legal proceedings
4. Freedom from arrest
5. Exercise of process
6. Entry to Assembly
7. Regulation of admission to Assembly
8. Order of withdrawal from Assembly
Part III – Evidence
9. Power to order attendance of witnesses
10. Attendance to be notified by summons
11. Power to issue warrant to compel attendance
12. Witnesses may be examined on oath
13. Objection to answer question or to produce papers
14. Privileges of witnesses
15. Evidence of proceedings in Council or committee not to be given without leave
16. Questions relating to evidence and production of documents before the Assembly or committee to be determined in accordance with usage of Parliament
Part IV – Offences and penalties
17. Proceedings to be deemed judicial proceedings for certain purposes
18. Offences relating to admittance to the Assembly
19. Other offences
20. Acceptance of bribes by members
Part V – Miscellaneous
21. Commons Journals to be prima facie evidence in inquiries touching privilege
22. Journals printed by the Government Printer to be admitted as evidence
23. Penalty for printing false copy of Act, journal, etc.
24. Protection of persons responsible for publications authorized by the Assembly
25. Publication of proceedings without malice
26. Exercise of jurisdiction by courts
27. Powers of officers
28. Power of arrest
29. Speaker may order words out of order not to be published
30. Sanction for prosecutions
31. Rules