FORTUNE+ VIDEO SPONSORED CONTENTS ADVERTORIALS FORTUNE AUDIO Fortune Careers TRADE AFRICA Election 2026 New TIME REMAINING UNTIL ETHIOPIA’S NATIONAL ELECTION 0Days 0Hours 0Minutes 0Seconds

Fortune Logo


By Dawit Astatike ( FORTUNE STAFF WRITER )

Parliament elected eight MPs to chair standing committees during its Friday, November 9, 2018, session. While rejecting the nomination of two, the legislative body elected women to head half of the eight standing committees.

Moutuma Meqassa, former Minister of Defense, and Atsibeha Aregawi, nominated to chair the Foreign Relations & Peace Affairs and the Revenues, Budgeting & Finance Affairs standing committees, respectively, were rejected by parliament.

"The stand showed the importance of the parliament’s position in democratisation and reform processes, "Misrak Mekonen (PhD), head of the Parliament Office, told Fortune.


The case was similar to parliament’s deliberation on the organisation of the standing committees on November 6. After a two-hour long debate, parliament elected near unanimously to downsize the number of standing committees by half from 20 but disagreed on the nomination of Motuma and Amanuel Abraham, the deputy government whip. It also put off proposals to raise chairmanship of the committees to ministerial ranks for another session.

“Our main focus was not in what rank the chairs could serve, but whether they would be able lead the respective committees to effectively oversee the executive organs of the government," said MP Ashenafi Gaime, who was elected to lead the Urban Development, Construction & Transport Affairs Standing Committee, told Fortune.


Amanuel was also nominated and rejected to chair the Legal, Justice & Democracy Affairs Standing Committees. Instead, Fozia Amin was nominated and elected to the position with a majority vote. The remaining nominees were approved with unanimous votes.


Out of 20 standing committee chairs, four were approved despite the downsizing.

“Downsizing the number from 20 to 10 is for the effective utilisation of resources,” Tagesse Chaffo, speaker of parliament, said.

The standing committee will have subcommittees that range from 20 to 43, depending on the nature of the organs that the committees are mandated to oversee. The speaker has the mandate to place MPs in the subcommittees, which will number a total of 334 members.


Women’s, Youth & Social Affairs; Human Resources & Technology affairs and Agriculture, Pastoralist & Environmental Conservation Affairs standing committees will each have over 40 subcommittees under them.

Opposition party leaders were skeptical of the parliamentarians decisions on the standing committees.

"The idea behind strengthening standing committees to effectively account for executive organs is commendable," said Yilikal Getnet, an opposition party leader. "But nothing has changed as the parliament still seems unable to check the administrative organs of the government."

He is also suspicious of the rejection of the two nominees, claiming that it looked more personal than anything that has to do with their professional capacity.


PUBLISHED ON [ VOL 19 , NO 968]

[ratemypost]


Related Posts

[ssba-buttons]

Put your comments here

N.B: A submit button will appear once you fill out all the required fields.

Editors' Pick

Exclusive Interviews

State Enterprises from Oracles to Apprentices

Dec 22 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW

Charged with transforming colossal state-owned enterprises into modern and competitiv...

Agenda

Rising Costs, Inflation Threaten Insurance Industry

Aug 18 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO

Although predictable Yonas Zerihun's job in the ride-hailing service is not immune to...

Agenda

BREWING DISCONTENT

Jul 28 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW

Unhabitual, perhaps too many, Samuel Gebreyohannes, 38, used to occasionally enjoy a couple of beers at breakfast. However, he recently swit...

Fortune News

Electric Vehicle Push Leaves Investors in the Lurch

Jul 13 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO

Investors who rely on tractors, trucks, and field vehicles for commuting, transporting commodities, and f...

Commentaries

The Missing Half of Ethiopia's Coffee Plan

The 3.1 billion dollars in coffee export earnings Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) ann...

When a Cheque Stops Meaning Pay Now

A cheque works because it promises one thing without conditions, which is to pay this amount, now. Strip away that certa...

Fineline

Leaders of the National . . .

Leaders of the National Election Board are in a charm offensive mood, of a sort. Last week, they organised a rare tour for members of the me...

When the country’s most. . .

When the country's most senior diplomats and envoys return back to their posts after two-week debriefings, they leave behind a point or two...

Editorial

Millions Looking for Work. Companies Cannot Find Many to Hire. A Paradox?

Jul 18 , 2026

Pressed in Parliament on jobs and household incomes, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD)...

Ethiopia Needs a Peace Premium the IMF Cannot Supply

Jul 11 , 2026

At a market stall, reform arrives without a communique. It comes as a higher transpor...

The New Gold Standard Comes with a Warning Label

Jul 4 , 2026

In the goldfields of the Benishangul-Gumuz Regional State, Ethiopia's balance-of-paym...

The Rent Law Protects No One Well. Time to Rewrite It.

Jun 27 , 2026

The federal legislative house rushed through one of the country's most contentious ho...

Gallery

Parliament Approves New Cabinet Members

Oct 6 , 2021

Parliament Approves New Cabinet, Incorporates Opposition Leaders Lawmakers have approved today the nominations of 22 ministers, including three opposition leaders. Two MPs have voted against, while 12 abstained...

2020 in Posterity

Jan 5 , 2021

TIGRAY VOTES DESPITE "NULL & VOID" THREAT

Sep 9 , 2020

IN-PICTURE: LAUREATE'S RECEPTION  

Dec 14 , 2019

PM Abiy Ahmed (PhD) at a Gala Dinner Called for the Awarding of the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize

May 6 , 2019

Faces, Voices of Addis Abeba

Apr 26 , 2019

Sunday With Eden

A Consultation Worth Less Than Bread

Imagine spending seven years studying medicine, completing demanding clinical rotatio...

A Body Trapped in Tomorrow

A medical doctor friend recently shared an area of research that had captured her attention. "Our bodies can't always tell the difference...

Life Matters

The Doors That Speak

It feels like a lifetime ago since I wore a high school uniform. Memory can be a fickle thing, and perhaps time has softened the edges of th...

Borrowing From Tomorrow to Survive Today

The other day, I was having coffee with a friend, let's call her Maya: when she confessed something that...