Luanda - Angolan Parliament members Tuesday in Luanda disagreed over the issue related to the retirement age of judges from any jurisdiction who turn 70 years of age, under the Constitutional Revision Law Project.
The rule in question states that judges of any jurisdiction should retire when they reach 70 years of age.
The vote on this article, which did not reach consensus among members, was made separately, obtaining 17 votes in favour, three against and no abstentions.
The MP of the opposition UNITA party Mihaela Webba and independent David Mendes argued that the retirement should be restricted to career judicial magistrates.
They said that the judges of the Constitutional and Audit Court, as they are not career judges, but specialised, cannot be compared with the judges of the Supreme Court.
In his turn, João Pinto of the ruling MPLA party, said that the judges have a career that elevates them to a category of people morally and technically capable of exercising this function, regardless of the court in which they are linked.
He recalled that the law in force already recognises and compares magistrates and other courts, and that retirement, within the framework of this law, "curiously is also at 70 years of age".
"So whoever spends the said period at the Constitutional Court or the Court of Auditors should not be entitled to retirement?, he asked, calling for the need to reflect on whether one wants to create islands or a system that recognises that there is a judiciary in which there are rights, duties and guarantees.
The Minister of State and Head of Civil Affairs Office to the President of the Republic, Adão de Almeida, clarified that the proposal under debate is a constitutional option, which is made according to the objectives, values and perspectives that exist in the different domains.
He explained that the proposal is designed for all judges, regardless of the jurisdiction they belong to (common or specialised jurisdiction) retirement at age of 70, noting that in the Constitutional Court there are also career judges.
"This is the meaning of the proposal that aims to ensure uniformity in the judiciary, so that everyone who enters the class, whether through common jurisdiction (career) or through special jurisdiction, there is a uniform regime that when they turn 70 retire", he stressed.