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To curb the spread of the virus, the Seimas also plans to conduct weekly coronavirus tests on parliamentarians (COVID-19), and a mobile checkpoint may appear near parliament.
On Thursday evening, the head of parliament, V.Čmilytė-Nielsen, announced that she was infected with the coronavirus. Former parliamentary leader Viktoras Pranckietis and Jonas Varkalys are also sick members of the Liberal Movement faction.
On Monday, decisions about telework
“We have agreed that we will start all the necessary procedures for teleworking and on Monday morning the Board will present concrete projects on the transition to teleworking,” V. Čmilytė-Nielsen said during a remote press conference on Friday.
He acknowledged that the process could take time, as there were a number of “both technical and legal aspects”, and the opposition “peasant” faction had gathered signatures for experts to evaluate the proposed amendments to the Seimas statute.
V.Čmilytė-Nielsen stated that the goal is to persuade the “peasants” not to stop the amendments, because “the common goal is to ensure the uninterrupted work of parliament.”
“It is necessary to change the statute and there is a possibility that the amendment will be a little more difficult, because a group of members of the Seimas has already requested an expert opinion on this amendment, which is one of the ways to stop the adoption of one or another project. We will try to convince colleagues that such changes are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of the Seimas, “said the Speaker of Parliament.
Peasant: the amendments create a trap
Agnė Širinskienė, representative of the Lithuanian Union of Peasants and Greens (LVŽS), says the opposition cannot approve the amendments to the Statute of the Seimas, according to the former head of the Law and Order Committee, they would allow the ruling authorities to abuse their powers . A group of opposition “peasants” requests an expert evaluation of the amendments to the Statute of the Seimas that promulgate remote sessions presented to the Seimas. Signatures were collected for this purpose.
“That proposal would create chaos, they would legitimize remote meetings in a sentence, but without all the procedures an article would be launched that says that all issues are resolved at the proposal of the presidency without discussion. We really see a threat that there will be Belarus, “A. Širinskienė told BNS.
“If the Belarusian version is already systematically restricted by restricting our rights, in this case the president of the Seimas or one of the ruling presidents will propose its rules and we will not even be able to argue under the Statute, and in fact a trap is created,” said A Širinskienė.
El Campesino also considered that with the spread of COVID-19 in the Seimas, it would be possible to announce a two-week break or at least return to the work model applied in the spring, when the plenary sessions were witnessed by members of the Seimas.
“On the other hand, thanks to the Liberals, we have contacted so much that, as Mr. Veryga says, we really need to take a two-week break without inviting the Chancellery staff and deal with that fire, because I think the situation in the Seimas it’s getting threatening, “he said.
However, he said the “peasants” could change their mind about the remote meetings if clearer proposals were made and the rights of the opposition were assured.
The initiator calls for non-stop
The amendment presented by the governors of the Seimas establishes that following the announcement of an emergency or quarantine situation by order of the President of the Seimas, the possibility for the members of the Seimas to join the Seimas session by electronic means could be guaranteed.
Photo by Lukas Balandi / 15min / Andrius Vyšniauskas
Conservative Andrius Vyšniauskas, one of the initiators of the project, notes that the amendment provides opportunities for members of the Seimas to participate in discussions remotely, and the initiative of the “peasants” to apply the conclusions “recalls the desire to suspend for I complete the work of the Seimas “.
“Regarding our proposed project, we propose to create opportunities to participate in the discussions of the Seimas sessions, present bills, ask questions, talk about them remotely. The votes would still live, because there is still no technological solution for that, ”A. Vyšniauskas told BNS.
It also maintains that teleworking ensures all the procedures provided for in the Statute, that is, that the meetings take place in the usual way.
“I strongly urge the peasants not to block further consideration of this issue, because their actions and speeches recall the desire to completely suspend the work of the Seimas. And that cannot be, because we are in important stages of approving the Government and considering the budget ”, said the parliamentarian.
Parliamentarians will be tested
The Seimas leadership also provided that MPs would undergo weekly coronavirus tests to prevent the virus from spreading.
“We have decided that a very clear and specific procedure will be established on how the members of the Seimas can be tested every week, and today some members of the Seimas will have the opportunity to perform the test, on Monday all the members of the Seimas will have the opportunity to carry out tests near the Seimas to ensure that the infected, who do not feel symptoms, would not be in the Seimas room ”, said V. Čmilytė-Nielsen during the press conference.
According to her, a mobile checkpoint can be installed next to parliament, but the details are still being coordinated by the Foreign Ministry with the National Center for Public Health.
“One of the possibilities is to have a mobile point near the Seimas, but it is necessary to address the issue to the Foreign Ministry, they are coordinating the decision with the National Center for Public Health and I believe that these decisions will be made in the near future,” said the Spokesman.
It is also planned to install partitions between the workplaces of the members of the Seimas in the plenary session hall of the Seimas, the parliamentarians who do not meet, will be asked to walk less in the room.
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