All matters not specifically provided for in the National Assembly rules, and all questions relating to the detailed working of the rules, are regulated in such manner as the Speaker may from time to time direct. This residuary power is broad and explicitly unlimited in scope.
Why it matters for the National Assembly proceedings?
Residuary powers exist because no set of written rules can anticipate every procedural situation. The Speaker’s authority to fill gaps ensures that unforeseen parliamentary situations do not create procedural paralysis. It is, however, an enormous reserve power that requires the Speaker to exercise independent, impartial judgement.
What is in it for citizens?
For citizens following unusual parliamentary proceedings — situations not clearly governed by a specific rule — the Speaker’s residuary power is the legal basis for whatever decision is made. Understanding that this power exists, and that it is exercised by the presiding officer alone, helps explain why the impartiality of the Speaker matters so much to the quality of parliamentary democracy.
Source: Rule 29, Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly, 2007
The proceedings of the National Assembly are governed by the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly, 2007. The current rules were passed on 23 February 2007 and have since been amended 21 times, most recently on 22 October 2024.
This post is part of FAFEN’s series on parliamentary literacy. Read more of this series here.
