Thursday , 25 April 2024
enfrit
The press was not allowed to witness a tense confrontation at the National Assembly between Parliamentarians and the Prime Minister. Both sides understandably preferred holding a private sitting because the issue was all about the deputies' privileges.

Reporters infuriated but out of the National Assembly anyway

The decision just as so understandably frustrated the press to the point of alleging a veiled will to ban the press from entry in the Lower Chamber. The Parliamentarians argued that some sessions have to be held privately, as it is usually done around the world, due to the raise of much too sensitive issues to be debated in public. The press has however very rarely been forced out of the parliament building in Antananarivo before. Reporters were clearly angered by such a careless expulsion, not the least by the Prime Minister’s and the Parliamentarians’ reluctance to make any comment at the conclusion of their session. Much later on, some leaks revealed that the bargain for privileges would have been more than indecent. The Parliamentarians required no less than a hundred times the standard basic wage, full tax exemption, and luxury 4 wheel drive vehicles at their disposal… No wonder that the press had to be kept out. Now, we know why, do we not?