• The past seven months have been quite an eventful one for parliament
• A number of major issues have come from the house since its first sitting
• GhanaWeb brings you five of those issues
With just one independent Member of Parliament separating the two sides, the eighth Parliament had the makings of action-packed one inundated with major issues and the last seven months bears ample testimony to these expectations.
It has been a whirlwind ride with the lawmaking chamber being the centre or the point of birth of some major issues in the country.
Members of Parliament, particularly from the side of the minority have in fairness exercised their watchdog responsibilities and brought to light some issues that took centre stage in the media space.
In the first of a series listicles that highlight some interesting aspect of the eighth Parliament, GhanaWeb brings you five major stories that defined the Alban bagbin-led Parliament.
Sitting arrangement and election of speaker
Right from when it was birthed, the eighth parliament gave signs that it will not be business as usual and that there will be issues.
From the night of the January 6 to the wee hours of January 7, 2021, there was chaos and pandemonium in Ghana’s house of honorables.
From the sitting arrangement to the counting of ballots, it is safe to say that majority of Ghana’s MPs dishonored themselves with how they went about issues.
The pictures of MP for Ablekuma West, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful sitting on the laps to the MP for Juaboso, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh and the video of the MP for Tema East, Carlos Ahenkorah bolting with and chewing ballot papers are perfect illustrations of Ghana’s day of shame – at least in parliament.
Members of Parliament for both sides clashed on how to go about the election of the Speaker as the helpless Clerk looked on powerless and helpless.
For the first time under the fourth republic, armed military men stormed parliament in a bid to restore calm but it rather exacerbated issues.
Cool heads eventually prevailed and not even Ahenkorah’s disgraceful conduct could prevent Alban Bagbin from unseating Professor Mike Oquaye as Speaker of Parliament.
It has been seven months and no one has been arrested or punished in accordance with parliamentary rules.
Coronavirus infections
Shortly after the chaos, it emerged that a number of MPs and Parliamentary staff had contracted the coronavirus.
In February, 15 MPs and 56 staff were confirmed positive after tests were carried out on members and parliamentary as well as other support staff.
This led to the house rescheduling its sittings to twice weekly but that measure could not solve the issue.
Parliament eventually closed down for three weeks after a further test showed that 151 staff and 17 MPs were positive.
Whiles on break, members of the Appointments Committee undertook the vetting of sectoral and regional ministers.
Despite their initial resistance against some ministers, the NDC MPs could not prevent the appointment of some ministers after the plenary voted against the recommendations of the Appointments Committee.
Guess the reason for their failure to garner enough votes against those ministerial nominees – Coronavirus infections.
Minority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak said on Adom TV: “a number of our members thought we had the power to reject them. After 6th and 7th when we engaged in that fracas and the soldiers came in, we all came to the middle of the chamber to sing and after what we did, 23 of our members got COVID.
“So before we were going into the chamber, me as a whip I reported that I didn’t have seven of my members, till now some of my members are at the COVID centre. Did we really have what it takes to do what people expected us to do? We didn’t.”
Legalization of LGBTQI
Answers given by some ministerial nominees and the opening of an LGBTQ+ office in Ghana generated furore about the legalization of same-sex relations in the country.
In one of the rare instances, MP were unanimous in their position that same-sex relations are alien to the country’s cultural values and under no circumstance will they pass a bill in support of it.
An anti-LGBTQ+ bill is under consideration and the last time the met on it, Speaker Alban Bagbin led a prayer session against ‘all spirits of gayism and lesbianism’ in the country.
£15,000 per hour presidential jet
Most Ghanaians particularly Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the Member of Parliament for North Tongu are still waiting on the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta to disclose the cost of President Akufo-Addo’s trip to France and South Africa in May.
Okudzeto Ablakwa first sounded the alarm, claiming that the President’s trip to the France-Africa summit after which he traveled to South Africa cost the country £345,000 equivalent to GHS2,828,432.80.
The lawmaker indicated that “The Airbus ACJ320neo owned by Acropolis Aviation based in Farnborough, UK and registered as G-KELT is the most luxurious and the most expensive in the Acropolis fleet. The manufacturers describe it as “the most outstanding ambassador for Airbus Corporate Jets.
“The aircraft in issue is less than two years old and had only returned from Switzerland where it received the highest luxurious spruce up ever known in the aviation world just before President Akufo-Addo chose that particular luxurious monster. It costs the Ghanaian taxpayer approximately £15,000 an hour when President Akufo-Addo rents it,” he said in a social media post.
His allegations were countered with claims that the Presidential jet was not in the best shape which led to the filing of emergency question for the Defence Minister to answer.
Dominic Nitiwul appeared before Parliament and gave reasons as to why the president opted for the luxurious plane.
“In practical experience since the aircraft (presidential jet) was acquired in 2010 whenever the aircraft is travelling to the eastern part of United States or Asia, the aircraft will not load through more than eight plus the luggage. So it depends on where it is going and the payload with it.
“Secondly, I have also said the aircraft has to do refuelling stops, and also in this Covid-19, when you are travelling to multiple destinations like the President’s recent travel, the Falcon couldn’t have been taken because he would have had to do technical stops which are not desirable.
“Again, when he is travelling with more than 20 people for a business trip, as he has done and brought huge sums of money for this nation, he will need more than just a Falcon, otherwise, the others would have to go a day ahead before the president to prepare themselves.”
The question about the airworthiness of the Presidential aircraft has been answered but Ghanaians are still waiting on the Finance Minister to update the country on how much was spent on the trip.
$28 millon car loan
In what has become a four-year ritual, members of Parliament had to deal with the public consternation of them enjoying a loan facility for the purchase of cars.
This is after the Finance Ministry tabled the offer to the house for review and approval.
The deal will see each MP pocket $100,000 as car loan payable within their four-year tenure.
MPs are divided on the issue. Whiles some like Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor of South Dayi believes that they deserve it, others think that it is unsustainable.
Okudzeto Ablakwa and his colleague, Patrick Yaw Boamah of Okaikwei Central have filed a Private Members bill to stop the loan.
The Finance Committee of Parliament has also recommended that after this term, Parliament should enjoy the same benefit as other institutions under Article 71 which means government should provide MPs with official vehicles.
