Discuss deal in Parlt: Steven

By SAMUEL BARIASI
THE practice of validating major transactions outside Parliament over the years has ignored provisions in the Constitution that discourages the State from doing so, Deputy Prime Minister Davis Steven says.
Presenting his view in Parliament yesterday during the debate on the Ombudsman Commission (OC) report on the inquiry into the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) loan deal, he said ignoring these provisions was unconstitutional and needed to stop.
Steven said the Government’s approval of the UBS loan deal was not the first time, there were many other cases over the years in which the Government validated major transactions without properly presenting it in Parliament.
He commended leaders and citizens who reported their grievances to the OC for taking bold steps doing so.
“This is not the first time the OC has investigated a commercial transaction,” he said.
“Similar reports have occurred in the past but I have to commend Prime Minster James Marape for his commitment in making sure that we go down to the bottom of this report.”
Steven said the most important point that he picked from the report was that the Government, country, and the Constitution was working.
“This is one instance in which our checks and balances are actually seen to be working.”
Steven commended the respective authorities involved in making sure that the report reached the floor of Parliament and the public as well. “Apart from being available to the public to access, the report will make us learn the necessary lessons and take necessary actions.”