The new rules for those attending the House of Assembly are anti-democratic and amount to an attempt to manage the media, a former senior parliamentarian charged last night.
After a “disturbing” video featuring “terrible images” was taken by someone in the gallery and posted on social media, it has been decided that only parliamentarians will be allowed to take cell phones into the House, photographs of MPs will only be allowed while they are standing to deliver an address, and cameras will not be allowed without written consent.
The veteran MP, who wished to remain anonymous pending the official announcement of the new rules, said: “This is stupid. The public can see the proceedings from on their own televisions. Many record it.
“This goes totally against the base principle behind televising the proceedings in the first place.”
Despite the act of filming a video from the gallery being characterised as “something wrong” by the House of Assembly, the political veteran pointed out that members of parliament are paid to do the people’s business while in the House of Assembly, and there is no reason why anything they do while on the job should be shielded from public view.
