THREE Members of Parliament have contacted the Mail & Guardian about=20 last week=D5s story on absenteeism in the National Assembly. The African National Congress=D5 David Dalling has pointed out he has been=
absent because of major surgery to his foot. The failure of this surgery ha=
prevented his return and forced him to have a further operation. He plans t=
return to Parliament in a wheelchair as soon as his health permits. The M&G had reported that he had =D2handed in medical certificates to=20 justify his five-month absence due to ankle problems=D3. ANC whip Jannie Momberg wrote to say he was =D2extremely disappointed=D3=20 by the article, which quoted the register as showing he had been away for=
25 days of the first part of this year. The article pointed out that the re=
was inaccurate. =D2If (the writer) had come to me for my side of the story, I could have ..=
explained that in March I went to Durham in England on an official World=20 Cross Country delegation. In May, I was away to give speeches in=20 Amsterdam at the request of the South African ambassador. =D2I could have explained to her that the register was wrong on seven days=
when I was actually marked absent and was present, and that on two days I=
was ill, for which I handed in a doctor=D5s certificate,=D3 he wrote. =D2Where the whole article creates the wrong impression to the public is th=
it is a crime or sin or transgression to use the 30 days to which a member =
entitled to be absent. These days can be used in various ways and most=20 members make use of it.=D3 A letter from Inkatha MP Farouk Cassim appears on Letters pages. Meanwhile, Parliament=D5s whips met on Tuesday to discuss ways of=20 restoring its =D2battered image=D3. Deputy Speaker Bhadra Ranchod, who co-chaired the meeting with Senate=20 President Kobie Coetsee, stressed the need for parties to stand together to=
protect Parliament=D5s dignity, sources at the meeting said. Several whips characterised the meeting as =D2an attempt to close ranks and=
put a brave face on the problems=D3. Ranchod was expected to announce plans to improve Parliament=D5s=20 efficiency later in the week. On Monday, Idasa Public Information Centre director Mamphela=20 Ramphele said Parliament was in crisis and needed professional help. On Tuesday, as the whips were meeting, the National Assembly=D5s defence=20 committee was unable to summon the quorum necessary to approve a Bill=20 establishing civilian control over the military. Sources at Tuesday=D5s meeting said all parties agreed something had to be=
done to get Parliament in order and legislation processed more efficiently. Deputy President FW de Klerk told the South African Press Association on=20 Tuesday that Parliament needed new management mechanisms and a chief=20 whip of Parliament, who should be above party politics. This had worked=20 well in the past and would bring order to Parliament. President Nelson Mandela, who was earlier reported to be cutting short an=
official visit to Botswana to meet the ANC caucus on Thursday, had=20 decided to complete his trip and was due to meet the caucus on Thursday=20 evening, his spokesman Parks Mankahlana said.