Somalia’s House of the People has begun deducting salaries from lawmakers who repeatedly miss parliamentary sessions, reviving a long-standing attendance rule that had remained largely unenforced for nearly four years.
Several MPs complained this week about deductions from their monthly pay.
Reports indicate that between eight and 13 lawmakers who missed seven sessions within a month had more than $1,000 deducted from their salaries under the parliamentary rules of procedure.
The measure is based on amendments to Article 23 of the House’s rules, approved in late 2022.
Despite the rule’s adoption, enforcement had been limited, with parliamentary authorities occasionally announcing the names of absent lawmakers rather than imposing financial penalties.
Under the attendance regulations, the House holds three sessions each week. Three late arrivals are counted as one day of absence, while an MP who misses three days without permission receives a written warning.
Lawmakers who accumulate seven days of unauthorised absence within a month are referred to the Ethics Committee and face a deduction equivalent to one-fifth of their monthly salary.
With each MP earning $5,240 per month, the prescribed penalty amounts to $1,048. The rules also prohibit lawmakers from avoiding the penalty by signing the attendance register and then leaving before a session ends. Such conduct is treated as an absence.
House Speaker Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur defended the enforcement drive, arguing that lawmakers should not receive equal pay when their attendance records differ significantly.
He said MPs who attend sessions, including those who are unwell, should not be treated the same as colleagues who remain absent without authorisation.
“Even if only two MPs show up, only those two will be paid,” the Speaker told lawmakers, signalling a tougher approach to parliamentary attendance.
The decision comes amid repeated disruptions to parliamentary business caused by a failure to meet the required quorum. A session cannot begin unless more than 140 MPs are present, while the rules permit only 30 lawmakers to be on leave at any one time.
According to the figures provided, sessions that fail to reach the required attendance threshold reflect widespread absence among members.
The enforcement of attendance rules is intended to strengthen accountability and ensure that lawmakers fulfil their legislative responsibilities.
However, MPs who challenge the deductions have the right to appeal within 15 days or request that the matter be debated by the full House.
The move marks a shift from warnings and public disclosure of absenteeism towards financial penalties, as parliamentary leaders seek to improve attendance and prevent repeated interruptions to legislative proceedings.