Handshakes across the aisle: MPs trade tension for warmth on Parliament’s opening day

Forget the fireworks — day one back in the House had a different energy altogether. After months apart, MPs on both sides of the chamber looked genuinely pleased to see each other, trading handshakes, laughs and long conversations that spilled well past the usual courtesies.

Transport Minister Jappie Mhango and Leader of the Opposition Simplex Chithyola Banda were spotted deep in conversation, heads close, the kind of easy rapport that made it hard to tell, for a moment, which side of the House either man sat on.

It’s the sort of scene Parliament-watchers don’t see often — a reminder that behind the podium speeches, the chamber is still a room full of people who’ve known each other for years.

Elsewhere, benches that are usually divided by party lines blurred a little, with MPs crossing the floor to chat, compare notes and catch up before the serious business of the Meeting got underway.

Whether it was relief at being back, the shared gravity of the South Africa repatriation issue, or simply old friendships resurfacing, the chemistry didn’t go unnoticed — with more than one observer joking that Parliament was seeing its own version of political flirtation, cross-party charm offensives dressed up as small talk.

It’s a mood that rarely survives the first heated debate. Whether the warmth carries into the tougher weeks ahead, as MPs turn to accountability questions and government’s handling of the xenophobia crisis, remains to be seen.