By Donstance Koroma
The National Disaster Management Agency Act was unanimously ratified by Parliament, past Tuesday, after it went through the Committee Stage and Third Reading by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Priscilla Schwartz.
Introducing the report, the Chairman of the Legislative Committee, HindoloMoiwoGevao, said the Act would beef the establishment of the National Disaster Management Agency to manage disaster related issues.
According to Hon Gevao,its branches would be established countrywide, adding that national, regional, district and chiefdom management committees would also be established.He furthered that a National Disaster Management fund would also be established to provide financesfor the prevention and management of disasters.Pursuant to Standing Order 51 (1), he said, the Legislative Committee met on Wednesday, 18th March, 2020 at the Committee Room No.1,Parliament Building, with the objective of scrutinizing the detailed provisions of the legislative proposal after the Second Reading in the House of Parliament. This will enable the Committee to ascertain the constitutional and legal implications contained therein and to, at the same time, report to Parliament in accordance with the provisions of the Standing Order.
The lawmaker continued that the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, officials from the Office of National Security (ONS) and the Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority were also in attendance and they made meaningful contributions.
Speaking on the recommendations, Hon.Gevao noted that, after scrutinizing the bill line by lineand clause by clause, the following recommendations were made to the House for approval: that the long title of the bill should be approved. To this, he said, the Committee agreed that wherever the word ‘does’ appears in the bill it should be amended to read – ‘the national platform.’
He continued that the Committee also agreed thatthe word ‘district’ and ‘chiefdom assembly’ in the bill should be read as the ‘District Disaster Management Committee.’ It was also agreed that the definition of the word or phrase,‘Agency’and ‘an authorized officer’should be approved. Another area of concern is the definition of the word ‘counsel’ and phrase, ‘Sierra Leone Mythological Agency,’ which should also be approved.
The definition of the word ‘Minister’ was redefined as a ‘Minister appointed by the President’, who will perform specific functions under the said Act.
The legal luminary said the Committee made consideration on the following definitions to be included in the interpretation section.
With regards the annex to the report, the Chairman of the Legislative Committee said the words ‘Disaster Management,’ and phrases – ‘disaster affected persons,’ ‘chiefdom disaster management committee,’ ‘prevention disaster management committee,’ ‘emergency preparedness,’ ‘emergency response operation,’ ‘national platform for national disaster risks reduction,’ response, prevention and vulnerability, among others, must also be approved.
During the debate, Hon. Quentin Sallie Konneh, an independent Member of Parliament (MP), moved a motion that MPs must be included in the Chiefdom Management Disaster Committee. His motion was seconded by Hon. Mark Mohamed Fofanah.
The motion was accepted after two thirds of the House voted in favour of it, and that gave MPs the legal right to be members of the Chiefdom Disaster Management Committee.
Lawyer Gevao further intimated that the composition of those Committees would be on knowledge base.
Hon. Dickson Rogers, of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), also suggested that the UN Resident Coordinator and other International Non Governmental Organizations should not be members of the National Disaster Management Committee but must be co-opted as members to avoid potential conflict between national and international duties.
It was also agreed by MPs that the Inter Religious Council be co-opted as members. The said bill was ratified into law by a comfortable majority.