Expulsion Bid Hits Procedural Wall

TDT | Manama

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A bid to strip three MPs of their seats cannot take effect by being filed alone. It must pass through a formal path of notice, committee review, a chance for the members concerned to answer the case, and then a two-thirds vote in Parliament.

That path has come into sharper view as more MPs add their names to the move against Abdulnabi Salman, Mahdi Al Shuwaikh and Mamdouh Al Saleh. The case now rests on procedure as well as numbers, with the Constitution and Parliament’s internal rules giving the chamber the final say.

Article 99 of the Constitution states that an MP’s membership ends if, during the term, the member is found to have lost one of the required conditions for holding the seat. Membership can also be ended over loss of trust and standing, or breach of parliamentary duties. In all such cases, the decision needs the approval of two-thirds of Parliament’s members.

The internal rules allow at least 10 MPs to submit a written request to the Speaker seeking to strip a member of his or her seat. The request must give reasons tied to the grounds named in Article 99.

Once the request is filed, the Speaker checks that it meets the formal requirements, sends a copy to the MP concerned, and places it on the agenda of the next sitting. Parliament then decides on referring it to the Legislative and Legal Affairs Committee.

The committee cannot begin its review until the MP has been notified to attend at a stated time. The member must be given at least three days’ notice before the meeting, must be heard, and must be allowed to present a defence. The MP may also ask another member of Parliament to assist during the discussion.

If the member does not attend, a second notice must be sent under the same rules. If the absence continues without an accepted excuse, the committee may carry on and finish its work.