Amended by [Act No. 1 of 1996]
56.
Sessions
(1)
The sessions of the Assembly shall be held in such place and begin at such time as
the President by Proclamation may appoint:
Provided that the place at which any session of the Assembly is to be held may be
altered from time to time during the course of the session by further Proclamation
made by the President.
(2)
A session of the Assembly shall be held from time to time so that a period of
12months shall not intervene between the last sitting of the Assembly in one
session and its first sitting in the next session.
(3)
The President may address the Assembly at the first sitting of every session.
(4)
Writs for a general election of members of the Assembly shall be issued within 60
days of the date of any dissolution of Parliament and a session of the Assembly
shall be appointed to commence within 30 days of the date prescribed for polling at
any general election.
Amended by [Act No. 2 of 1982]; [Act No. 48 of 1991]
57.
Prorogation and dissolution of Parliament
(1)
The President, acting in accordance with the advice of the Prime Minister, may at
any time prorogue or dissolve Parliament:
Provided that –
(a)
(i)
where the Assembly passes a resolution that it has no confidence in the
Government and the Prime Minister does not within 3 days either resign from his office or
advise the President to dissolve Parliament within 7 days or at such later
time as the President, acting in his own deliberate judgement, may consider
reasonable, the President, acting in his own deliberate judgement, may
dissolve Parliament; or
the Prime Minister resigns from his office and, before resigning, advises the
President to dissolve Parliament, the President may, where he has reason
to believe that another person is capable of forming a government with the
confidence of a majority in the Assembly, and acting in his own deliberate
judgement, decline to act on the advice of the Prime Minister and may invite
that other person to form a government.
Amended by [Act No. 28 of 2003]
(b)
where the office of Prime Minister is vacant and the President considers
there is no prospect of his being able within a reasonable time to appoint to
that office a person who can command the support of a majority of the