Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, has said Ghana cannot pride itself with the number of female representation in the country’s legislature currently.

According to the Majority Leader, out of the 275 MPs the female representation is only 31, and lamented over the number looking at how far Ghana has come with its Parliamentary democracy.

As part of a symposium to mark 25 years of an interrupted parliamentary democracy, recounting how “men on the horseback” during any military intervention parliament was dissolved.

Mr. Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu noted that the International Parliamentary Union (IPU) requires that by 2020 a third of parliaments would have appreciable female representations in their legislature.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

 

Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in Parliament, Dr. James Klutse Avedzi, has revealed that payments without supporting documents still persist in some Assemblies and senior high schools in the country.

According to the PAC Chairman, some Assemblies and schools visited by the committee in the three regions in the north, Brong Ahafo and Ashanti Region “what runs across is unsupported payment documents”.

While working on the Auditor-Generals report 2015 to 2016 that was referred to the House, which the committee is currently working on, he said in an interview.

He noted that there has been an improvement in general, but in some Assemblies and schools, the issue of unsupported payments keep repeating itself.

“If you take money from government coffers there must be a reason for taking that money, it is the voucher and all supporting documents that would explain what you use the money for”.

He further questioned why most of the Assemblies, schools visited, did not have supporting documents at the time of auditing by the district auditors, but were able to produce supporting documents whiles the PAC moved in.

“One is tempted to conclude that you later manufactured those documents, so they might not be genuine, this is one thing that runs through most of the institutions visited”.

He again pointed out that fuel purchased could not be accounted for, once you are going to start a journey you should be able to login that I am moving from town A to B, he indicated.

“These were not down initially, after a period of six month to one year, how do you remember all the places the vehicle visited for you to come and have this new login done?”

Dr. James Klutse Avedzi further revealed non-earn salaries in the Assemblies and schools are reducing drastically, adding, going forward he hopes it would be a thing of the past.

And blamed it on the institutions not reporting to the Controller and Account General, when officers resign or retires but they continue to take salaries and their names not deleted from the pay role system.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minority Leader and Member of Parliament for Tamale South, Haruna Iddrisu is lamenting over the practice where the opposition Minority, since 1993 parliamentary practice, is left with the crusade of oversight of the Executive Arm of Government.

According to the Minority Leader this practices weakens parliament and promised President Nana Akuffo-Addo, “we would continue to hold members of the Executive including the President accountable to the people of Ghana”.

He made this remarks when parliament organised a symposium on Monday to commemorate the 25 years of parliamentary democracy in Ghana, on the theme “challenges and prospect”. As the House observe 25 years of uninterrupted parliamentary democracy under the fourth republic.

Mr. Iddrisu noted that strong parliament reflects a strong democracy; it reflects accountable government and a strong parliament remains the custodian of the liberties of the people at all times.

The Tamale South legislator bemoaned the high attrition rate and hoped the House would tap from the experience of older and experienced MPs who graced the occasion.

Ghana has become the beacon of democratic hope since the promulgation of the 1992 constitution as parliament reflects all shares of opinion in our parliament, Christians Muslims and traditional believers, he said.

And added that the powers given to the President is excessive and pointed out that he was not refereeing to President Nana Akuffo-Addo, but presidents of Ghana in general and in the future there should be away to water down the powers of the President.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Leader of Government Business and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu has said the high attrition rate in Ghana’s Parliament is taking enormous toll on the quality of delivery in the House.

According to the Leader of Government Business, a Parliament is strong as its members and the quality of material in the Ghanaian Parliament should be the concern of all.

He thus pleaded with the political parties to be mindful of the deteriorating quality of Parliament noting that “the high attrition rate in the country is not helping to grow our Parliament.”

“Today, the 275 members that we have, more than one half are first timers and it explains the reason why when we want to talk about quality materials in Parliament we are talking about Alban Bagbin, we are talking about a person called Kyei Mensah Bonsu. These two people are not instant products. They are not products of today. They belong to the years of your Excellency President Akufo-Addo, your year group,” he said.

The Minister of Parliamentary Affairs further attributed the inability of Ghana’s Parliament to effectively exercise its oversight responsibility to its lack of financial independence.

“Ghana’s Parliament doesn’t have the financial independence we want it to have even though we have made tremendous strides,” he said during his speech at a ceremony to celebrate 25 years of uninterrupted Parliamentary Democracy under the fourth republic on Monday the 5th of March 2018.

Again “Its committees are not properly resourced and are unable to do proper enquiry into governmental activities which as the constitutional provide will lead to the formulation of laws. We are not able to do this effectively.”

Mr. Mensah-Bonsu also bemoaned the glaring inequality in gender representation in the House despite a requirement by the IPU that a third of the membership of Parliament in the world should be females by 2020.
Unfortunately, the 275 members of Parliament that we have, the female representation is in the region of 31 and that cannot be a source of pride for us, he lamented.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minority Chief Whip, Mohamed Mubarak Muntaka, has expressed worry of the absence of the Minister of Agriculture, and his Deputies on the floor of the House to answer questions that were scheduled in their name on Wednesday.

According to the Chief Whip, the questions were advertised on the provisional Order paper on Tuesday to be taken the following day but had disappeared from the Order paper of the House.

“Nobody has told us Mr. Speaker why those two questions has disappear from the Order paper there is not communications the Ministers are not here to answer despite the fact that the MPs are here to ask their question”.

Speaker Professor Mike Aaron Oquaye took some time to consult with the table office.
After three minutes, Speaker Oquaye then advised officials from the Ministry of Agriculture to expedite action when they have any communication for the House.

“I am informed that the Ministers and his Deputies had to reschedule and perform a business outside Accra and as such request the question being made, request it being reschedule for the Minister to address the issue”.

“Further more kindly confirm the name of the irrigation project which is the subject matter of the question to enable the necessary action, the Speaker presented this information to the House”.

The Speaker directed that the Ministry of Agriculture make a follow up with the table office of the House to have the issues resolved and noted that he is very mindful of the need for Parliament to be taken serious.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Member of for Parliament for Kumbungu, Ras Mubarak is blaming the Minister for Education, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh for misusing the Ghanaian taxpayers’ money by spending over $370,000 to train 13 people in the United  States of America.

According to Ras Mubarak the amount of money being used to train 13 people at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MI) in the US could have been done in Ghana at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).

He made this remarks in an interview with Journalist on Thursday after he was dissatisfied with the Speaker Professor Mike Aaron Oquaye not allowing him to ask his further probing question on the floor.

But the Education Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh in a response on the floor of Parliament justified the $370,000 expenditure, arguing the training was important for the National Service Scheme.

The Kumbungu legislator told ghanamps.com he would report the conduct of the Speaker to the leadership of the Minority as he was not allowed to ask his third question on the floor of the House which is the usual procedure.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Members of Parliament (MP) are complaining of delay in payment of their salaries, adding the development is distorting their plans.

Speaking to Journalists in Parliament, most of the Minority members said their January salary hit their account on the 10th of February and as at 2nd of March 2018, salaries had not been paid even though they have a long weekend to endure, they said.

Member of Parliament for Asuogyaman, Thomas Ampem Nyarko noted that it is a trend which is worrying and noted that every MP is complaining, “This is not about Minority or Majority, this is a serious thing that is happening to us you plan your finances and it is distorted”.

“We are going into our constituency for 6th March independence celebration we have a lot of expenditure ahead of us”.

As to whether the issue has been raised on the floor of the House, he responded in the affirmative, and said Ras Mubarak has raised the issue on the floor of the House.

“Government should tell us something we do not have any communication for us to plan”.

As to why the Majority side is not speaking, he noted that it is their government in power and when they talk they would be tagged as being against government. This should not be taken on the patrician way this is something affecting all of us, he lamented.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minister of Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has said government is committed to ensuring that Vocational and Technical Education receive equal attention as Senior High School Education.

According to the Minister in fulfillment of such an agenda all students admitted into the forty-seven (47) Public Technical/Vocational Institutions are enjoying Free Senior High School package across the country.

As part of ensuring government’s commitment, 19 existing Public Technical/Vocational Institutions have been earmarked for up-grading and enhancement of facilities for effective and efficient teaching and learning across the country.

Government has provided workshops, classrooms, laboratories and supply of equipment and tools, staff accommodation as well as capacity building of training instructors.

Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh revealed to Parliament that 20 “State of the Art” new Technical/Vocational Institutes, two in each region are to be constructed to serve as resource centers as well as training more Ghanaian youth in relevant skills development by creating additional access and quality Technical and Vocational Educational delivery.

Again government has developed a five year strategic plan for Technical/Vocational Education to re-aligning all Technical/ Vocational which are scattered in 19 different Ministries for effective coordination, regulation, harmonization and standardization. This brings TVET instruction and assessment and certification under the Ministry of Education.

He in addition said government is drafting a legislation to amend Council for Technical, Vocational Education and Training (COTVET), National Vocational Training Institute (NVIT) and the National Board for Professional and Technical Examination(NABPTEX) Acts.

“To provide smooth transformation and ameliorate the gap in skills training and further reduce youth unemployment”, he said.

The Minister was in parliament to respond to question by the Kumbungu legislator, Ras Mubarak who wanted to know steps being taken to ensure that Technical and Vocational Education receive equal attention as Senior High School education.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com