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The The Speaker of Parliament, Mr Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, has ordered Parliament to put pressure on the committee which is supposed to advise it on the nomination of four people to sit on the Parliamentary Service Council (PSB).
He said committee members’ advice should reach his office on or before Friday, March 26, failing which he would interpret it as an attempt to hinder the President’s work.
According to him, until the committee recommended the names of the persons to be appointed to the PASB, it could not, on its own initiative, proceed with the appointment of the members as this would constitute a violation of the 1992 Constitution.
“I am not a member of Parliament so I need you to be able to function. You may need to go back and look at the committee you created or pressure the committee to come up with the opinion of the House on the identity of those members. Then I will make the appointment, we will inaugurate the board of directors and we will get to work, ”he said.
Attempted obstruction
Speaking in Parliament yesterday, Mr Bagbin said: “Since I became President, the committee of the Parliament has not given me any advice and I do not want to do this in a confrontation with the Parliament”.
“And I’m okay with getting the advice to my office by Friday this week at the latest. Failing to receive this notice, Mr. Speaker will continue to interpret it as an attempt to prevent the Speaker from discharging his duty and Mr. Speaker will do what Mr. Speaker considers fair, ”he said. declared.
The Speaker gave the directive after some MPs raised concerns about the absence of the PASB, a situation that seriously affected the functions of the Legislative Assembly, and sought to determine with the Speaker what frustrated him in the matter. the exercise of its functions.
Among the deputies were the deputies of Banda, Mr. Ibrahim Ahmed and Bawku Central, Mr. Mahama Ayariga, both members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Who are PSB members?
The PSB consists of the President as President, the Clerk of Parliament, majority and minority leaders, a sitting Member of Parliament and a former Member of Parliament.
Refusal to advise
The president said the committee that was supposed to advise him on the nomination of PSB members had so far failed and refused to fulfill its duty since becoming president.
He said he did several follow-ups for the committee’s opinion but “to date, the opinion is not yet in front of me”.
“I have considered making the appointment, and then you or your committee will take me to court to say that I do not have that power. But we must set up the Parliamentary Service Council, ”he stressed.
He said there are many things waiting to be done by Parliament, but “we cannot move forward due to the absence of the Parliamentary Service Council”. .
Constitutional violation
Ahmed said parliament, which had oversight responsibility for the executive, was quick to reprimand the executive for failing to set up the boards of companies or state agencies.
“We are always pushing to make sure these boards of state institutions are formed, but if you come to the Parliament of Ghana, not forming the Parliamentary Service Council reveals a serious violation of the Constitution,” he said. declared.
He therefore wondered what exactly prevented the President from appointing the members to constitute the PSB, given that the committee which was supposed to advise the President had already been set up by the House.
Sanction of the committee
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) for Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Mr. Frank Annoh-Dompreh, also acknowledged that a committee, made up of leaders from both sides of the House, to advise the President on the nomination of PSB members had already been constituted. .
While agreeing that the committee should be prepared to advise the President on the members to be appointed to the PSB, Mr Annoh-Dompreh does not think the issue should have been discussed in plenary.
“This is an issue that could have been addressed without necessarily being raised,” he said.
What is frustrating, Mr. President?
NDC MP for Bawku Central, Mr Ayariga, said a number of people had been interviewed to be recruited into the parliamentary service but were told they were unable to recruit them in due to the absence of the PSB to process their appointment.
He also said that apart from MPs, the welfare and welfare of the rest of the staff as well as the procurement of goods and services need to be regulated and managed by the PSB to make the parliament functional.
“Mr President, if frustration prevents you from doing this, let us know as a Parliament so that the committee of this House has voted and approved to perform this function can be duly sanctioned by this House. We can change them and give them new deadlines, ”he said.
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