Today, the President of the Timorese National Parliament appealed to deputies to promote conciliation and dialogue, with a sense of state and “altruism in defense of the national interest”.
“Parliament must promote conciliation, join efforts to consolidate the State and for the sake of development and prosperity, fulfilling its political, legislative and supervisory missions”, said Aniceto Guterres Lopes.
Aniceto Guterres Lopes was speaking at the formal opening session of the third legislative session of the fifth parliamentary term of the National Parliament, where today the Timorese President, Francisco Guterres Lu-Olo will speak.
Recalling the challenges that the country faced since 2017, with a deep political crisis, Aniceto Lopes underlined the importance of strengthening the State’s consolidation measures and, in the current context, of accelerating the economic recovery measures.
“It is necessary to reinforce the policies and economic recovery plan to be able to sustain the economic life of Timor-Leste to prevent it from affecting national stability and security”, he stressed.
Regarding the impact of the covid-19 pandemic, which has aggravated the country’s economic crisis, the President of Parliament said that “the political disagreement and divergence” on the issue may increase the risk for the population.
Lopes considered it essential “to ensure that laws and policy reflect the needs of citizens” and defended “dynamic and permanent communication between deputies and voters, realizing the right to petition and active participation of citizens”.
The President of Parliament defended more work to communicate with citizens, to ensure that non-organized civil society has “effective participation” spaces and to guarantee coordination in the development of the legislative framework.
In particular, and in reference to the recently approved anti-corruption law, Aniceto Lopes said that Parliament now has to prepare the “legal framework that is necessary to strengthen the movement to prevent and fight corruption in Timor-Leste”, especially with regard to technical capabilities.
At the same time, the official defended a growing political inspection and the execution of the General State Budget (OGE), “a crucial function to ensure the quality and benefits of development for the people”.
In the new legislative session, Aniceto Guterres Lopes wants more debates with members of the Government, in plenary and in specialized committees and more information for the public.
