Parliament passes 21 laws

In the last three months, the Chamber of Deputies has passed 21 laws with 13 of them already approved by Senate.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Parliamentary speaker Rose Mukantabana. In the last three months, the lower chamber of deputies passed 21 laws with 13 out of them being approved by senate.The New Times / File.

In the last three months, the Chamber of Deputies has passed 21 laws with 13 of them already approved by Senate.Among the legislations that attracted much public attention were the three media laws, anti-public smoking and anti-abortion. Mukantabana explained that discussions to formulate laws for faster harmonisation of the East African Community (EAC) are also underway."We have successfully established a common market to facilitate cross-border trade but there are some issues being discussed in connection with having a single currency,” she said.Among other achievements, Mukantabana said that parliament has completed investigations into mismanagement of public funds in some government institutions.According to her, the house wants prompt legal action taken against suspects identified in such fund management scandals."From the investigations carried out, it was discovered that there was poor planning and some funds were not issued in accordance to the law. We are calling on relevant authorities to try the suspects as soon as possible,” she stated.During a press briefing last week, senate president Dr Jean Damascene Ntwukuriryayo said that four other draft laws are currently under review in different senatorial standing committees.