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It was supposed to be a battle of wit and strategy, one evening when two seasoned lawmakers, one former boss of the other, had to face off in what promised to be a close race for the presidency of the 8th. Ghana. parliament.
Both the NDC and the NPP had claimed to be in the majority, even before the dissolution of the 7th parliament, giving an indication of the tragedy to be expected at the birth of the 8th.
The progress of the night’s business, however, rested on the shoulders of a man, Cyril Kwabena Oteng Nsia.
The Clerk of Parliament, who assumed the role in 2019, faced the toughest test of any predecessor in the Fourth Republic.
Part of the public attributed Thursday’s debacle in part to its inability to keep track of MPs who were clearly divided over who was going to be their chairman.
First, there was a heated question over whether or not his office had received an order from the Cape Coast High Court barring Assin North MP-elect James Quayson from being sworn in.
This sparked debate over his attempt to deny Mr Quayson the chance to vote, for hours on end.
The pressure on him to make a statement was telling. It was not lost on the Directory of Public Affairs of Parliament, Kate Addo who even reached out to rub her back in an attempt to calm him down.
But that wasn’t enough to save him from the night that only kept getting more chaotic and exhausting.
Whether it is vandalizing voting screens, tearing a ballot box, passing through certain ballots, MPs have ignored all the signals of his hammer. Even amid the brief presence of the military.
He was accused of not being firm enough and blamed for everything that happened that night by the same MPs who did not cede to his authority.
In the end, the job was done and history was made. Under his supervision, the Parliament elected its first member of the opposition to the high office of President, Alban Bagbin.
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