The MPLA parliamentary group expressed solidarity today, Tuesday, 27, with MPLA deputy, Manuel António Rabelais, who saw the plenary of the National Assembly unanimously approve, with 170 votes in favor, none against and no abstention, the draft resolution and the report joint opinion on the suspension of his mandate and the consequent loss of immunity, hoping that he will present convincing arguments to prove his innocence in the acts in which he is involved.
“We hope that our colleague will present to the judicial authorities arguments that prove his innocence in this process in which he is involved, because it was the MPLA himself who chose, in his 2017 electoral program, the fight against corruption and nepotism as a priority”, MPLA deputy João Pinto told reporters.
With this act, which is not the first in the history of the Angolan Parliament, according to João Pinto, “the MPLA shows society that it is not afraid of changes and that it will continue to respect the Constitution of the Republic of Angola, approved in 2010”.
UNITA, in the voice of Congresswoman Miahela Webba, said that the National Assembly has fulfilled its role and that it now hopes that the process will not suffer political interference with the judicial institutions.
“UNITA has always been concerned about the excess of corruption and nepotism in Angola, but the Government and the ruling party have never taken drastic measures against these harmful practices,” said the deputy, stressing that the opposition political parties, especially UNITA, and civil society, will monitor the outcome of this process.
CASA-CE’s president, André Mendes de Carvalho, said that of all the accusations against a former minister of Social Communication, that of violation of the rules of execution of the budget plan, it is this that he can be held responsible for.
“This accusation of money laundering does not go very well, because the defunct Office for the Revitalization of Institutional Communication and Marketing of the Administration (GRECIMA), acted as a currency exchange. Many people were involved here,” he added.
PRS President Benedito Daniel said that the National Assembly has fulfilled what the Constitution says about deputies, when they are involved in these types of cases.
“We will hope that the Justice does its job and our colleague defends himself”, he summarized.
His FNLA counterpart, Lucas Ngonda, said that, in these cases, the National Assembly must have a culture of Parliamentary Commissions of Inquiry to find out more.
“We voted on a resolution that we do not have a deep knowledge of,” he concluded.
Manuel Rabelais is accused of crimes of embezzlement, violation of rules of execution of the plan and budget, undue receipt of benefits and money laundering, as director of the extinct Office for the Revitalization of Institutional Communication and Marketing of the Administration (GRECIMA), between the years 2016 and 2017.
In addition to the former Minister of Social Communication, he is also involved in the process, as an accused, Hilário Santos, then GRECIMA’s administrative assistant.
The statute of deputies states that the loss of immunities occurs through a request from the courts to the National Assembly, which, in turn, will meet in plenary and, through a resolution, decide whether or not to withdraw immunities “.
According to the Constitution of the Republic, in its article 150, deputies cannot be detained or imprisoned without authorization to be granted by the National Assembly or, outside its normal period of operation, by the Permanent Commission, except in flagrante delicto for punishable crime with a prison sentence of more than two years.
After the initiation of criminal proceedings against a deputy and, once accused by order of pronouncement or equivalent, except in flagrante delicto for a felony punishable by imprisonment of more than two years, the plenary of the National Assembly must deliberate on the suspension of the deputy and withdrawal of immunities.
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