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Speaker of Parliament Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin on Monday morning issued a two-hour ultimatum to Minister of Health Kwaku Agyeman Manu to appear before the House to answer a question posed by a member from the room.
He warned that Mr. Agyeman Manu’s failure to appear before the Chamber would subject him to the necessary consequences.
He explained that questions were filed, processed and sent to ministers before returning to the Business Committee before being scheduled for ministers to appear on specific days to answer questions.
“The Minister of Health is therefore aware that the issue is scheduled for today. The reason he gave for his inability to appear before the House to answer the question was a complete lack of respect for Parliament, ”he said.
At the start of proceedings in Parliament on Monday, Mr. Bagbin said: “And I will not accept this. I order the minister to appear before Parliament within two hours to answer questions. Otherwise, the necessary consequences will be applied. Ministers must take parliamentary business seriously.
“It is 11:40 in the two hours when the minister should appear to answer this question,” he said.
Why the warning?
Mr. Manu was to appear before the House to answer a question from the deputy of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for Sefwi Akontombra, Mr. Alex Tetteh Djornobuah, who was to ask the Minister what type of health facility is scheduled to be built in Sefwi Akontombra , when it is finished and delivered.
But in the absence of Mr. Agyeman Manu, who is also an NPP MP for Dormaa Central, to answer the question, the Majority Chief Whip, Mr. Frank Annoh-Dompreh, rose to tell the House that the minister called him on Sunday to tell him he had a national assignment outside of Accra.
He said the minister therefore asked the House to postpone his appearance on Tuesday.
Strong reaction
But the chief minority whip, Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka, expressed strong reservations about the excuse chosen by the minister.
He told the House that the question Mr Agyeman Manu was due to answer was not completed on Sunday but last week and therefore urged the President not to receive an apology from ministers, who considered that ‘it was more important to attend another mission outside Parliament.
“This is the time around the budget when all ministers must be in Accra and must be in Parliament.”
“Mr. Speaker, if we relax and let these things get worse, then we will all be held accountable for ensuring that this House is continually seen as weak.”
We are in a new era
He therefore urged his colleague majority whip to send the right signal to ministers on their side that the business of the House was just as important.
“Ministers of State always have enough time and they must give priority to the business of the House.
“Mr President, if the Minister is clearly not here, we cannot force a person who is not in the Chamber to answer a question, but we will be very grateful if you send the right message to all ministers that this Parliament is not like the seventh. Parliament where they do things and run away.
“They need to realize that we are in a new era; we are not going to allow ministers to ignore this House on the pretext that they have other things that are just as urgent, ”he declared.
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