Nine Bills under review at 6th National Council
The 6th National Council commenced its special session this week in Windhoek, with the Namibian Parliament’s Upper House expected to consider Bills passed and submitted to it for review in line with Article 75(1) of the Constitution.
The Chairperson of the National Council of Namibia, Hon Lukas Sinimbo Muha, MP, said in his opening remarks that the National Assembly has been working around the clock to ensure that urgent Bills before Parliament are sent to the National Council in time for consideration.
This was revealed in a media release, by the Research and Information Division of the National Council, which noted that the Council will also conduct Standing Committee and related meetings during this time.
The MP further explained that the special session is necessary to guarantee that Namibia is not greylisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The FATF identifies jurisdictions with weak measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. The FATF greylist, officially known as Jurisdictions Under Increased Monitoring, includes nations with deficiencies in their money laundering and terrorist financing combating systems.
The session will last for three weeks, slated to end in mid-July. Meanwhile, the Bills referred to the National Council thus far are the Financial Intelligence Amendment Bill [B.2-2023]; Extradition Amendment Bill [B.8-2023]; International Co-operation in Criminal Matters Amendment Bill [B.7-2023]; Livestock and Livestock Products Amendment Bill [B.4-2023]; Virtual Assets Bill [B.12-2023]; Prevention of Organised Crime Amendment Bill [B.11-2023]; Prevention and Combating of Terrorist and Proliferation Activities Amendment Bill [B.13-2023]; Police Amendment Bill [B.5-2023]; and Criminal Procedure Amendment Bill [B.10-2023].
According to Muha, the Livestock and Livestock Products Amendment Bill [B.7-2023] is a routine Bill for review, while the other 8 are considered urgent.
“Thus, the urgent Bills will enjoy priority before other considering Bills, and consequently, I implore my fellow MPs to ensure a speedy but effective review of the referred Bills to demonstrate the National Council’s commitment to the Namibian nation and international community,” he said this when the 6th National Council resumed its special session this week.
