Member of Parliament for Kumbungu, Ras Mubarak, has urged the Speaker of Parliament Professor Mike Aaron Oquaye to cause an investigation into the operation of the military in his constituency that burn some trucks and excavators.

According to the Kumbungu lawmaker the investigation would ascertain whether or not actual pollution of the river took place and if not prescribe appropriate compensations to people whose equipment and trucks were touched.

He further pointed out that he supports every effort to fight illegal mining and sand winning, but should be carried out within the confines of the law.

And suggested that MPs visit his constituency site of the operation to ascertain for themselves what had taken place and a meeting with the various stakeholders.

“Mr. Speaker, the Northern Region is one of the poorest regions of the country, burning down of these trucks and equipment certainly deprives some people of their livelihood and further exacerbates the already existing poverty in the region”.

He further said the military should not be seen to be sidestepping the laws of the land, it sends a very bad signal that we are still stuck in the stoneage. The military which I personally hold in high esteem acted arbitrarily and is not accepted in the current dispensation, he added.

Mr. Speaker section 99 (5) of Act 900 provides that, “where a person is arrested for an offence under subsection 3 or 4, any equipment used in, or associated with the commission of the offence shall, regardless of ownership of the equipment or product, be seized and kept in the custody of the police”, he said.

The Act further provide that the Minister of Lands “shall within 60 days after the confiscation of equipment or product allocate the equipment or product to the appropriate state institution and publish in the gazette the name of the institution to which the equipment or product is allocated”.

Mr. Ras Mubarak pointed out that Parliament passed the mining and minerals act, prescribing exactly what action ought to be taken in situations where people mine or win sand illegally.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

 Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has said the National Security Minister Albert Kan Dapaah should be made to produce and present his annual report to the House.

According to the North Tongu MP, it is part of the requirements of the Securities and Intelligence Agencies Act. he made this remarks on the floor of the House and said successive governments have violated the Act.

Mr. Ablakwa quoted the Securities and intelligence Agencies Act saying, “the President shall assign ministerial responsibility to the intelligence agencies to such Minister as the President shall consider appropriate. The minister assigned responsibility shall in respect of each year submit a report to Parliament on the intelligence agencies.”

Mr. Ablakwa also said that the report was more critical now than before, considering the current security challenges facing the country.

“Since I have been in this House, I don’t recall ever seeing a report from the Minister responsible for the National Security Council and this is a time that as a House, we are all discussing how we can help in the fight against armed robbery and all of that. Such a report will be very useful to this House as we deliberate to see what support our intelligence agencies require. So I want to draw the attention of leadership so that the Securities and Intelligence Agencies Act will be respected,” he remarked.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament for Adaklu, Governors Kwaku Agbodza has said 80 percent of MPs absent from the chamber should not be linked to committee meeting.

According to the Adaklu legislator, MPs should make mother Ghana proud by coming to work early.

In an interview with ghanamps.com he congratulated Speaker for taking a bold stand on the punctuality of MPs to the floor of the House, “Speaker is always here before Majority of MPs turn up”.

He further added that it would be necessary for committees to sit before the plenary starts, this is a condition given by the Speaker and added that the House has always done that.

When ask what about if an issue comes before the floor that needs the attention of the House, he said that should be an exception and not an order. “If it becomes necessary a committee will walk out to work to aid work on the floor of the House”.

Mr. Kwame Agbodza noted that he intend talking about the reporting time of MPs to the floor until there is a change in the late attendance to the chamber. “We have been elected by our people to represent them and paid by this Country”.

“You saw the children from Bawku they came overnight and have been sitting in the public gallery since 9:30am when it was 11:00am they left. The House started 11:30am what impression would they create about us when they get back to school about MPs.”.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Former Deputy Minister of Education in charge of tertiary, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has said the unavailability of the list of staff at the Presidency is affecting the House in carrying out its oversight responsibility.

According to the former Deputy Minister, the Minority has raised this issue persistently on the floor of the House, with assurance from the Minister of Monitoring and Evaluation Dr. Anthony Akoto Osei that the list would be provided to the House but that promise has not been met.

He further touched on annual reports from the public universities which should be on the floor of the House but non of the report has been received by the House.

“This is affecting our oversight responsibility mandate given by the 1992 Consitution”.

And pointed out that, at the University of Ghana, there is a claim of $64million dollars loan the University took if not paid back might lead to the University being privatized.

Same applies to the University of Education Winneba, there are management crisis, Parliament has not received all these reports, and they are outstanding. “It affects us in carrying our oversight role and duties to help run these institutions”, he lamented.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament for Effutu Alexander Afenyo-Markin has cautioned his colleague from Adaklu, Kwame Agbodza in his crusade to ensure that MPs come to work on time, not to make it look like MPs do not come to work on time.

According to the Effutu legislator his good friend he has a lot of respect for has not situated his concern properly because there are committee meeting in Parliament as early as 8:00am and 9:00am.

Again there are pre-sitting engagement by leadership of the House to build consensus on issues before they come to the floor of the House. The MP who contributed to this debate on the floor of the House noted that late start of the House cannot be blame on the Speaker because in is always early to the chamber, he said.

The Effutu law maker noted that, sometimes unavoidable engagement contributes to the House starting late, these are not new since “you and I entered this chamber 2003 you and I know this”.

MP for Bodi Sampson Ahi, noted that as early as 8:00am members of the works and Housing committee were in the chamber last week and had to leave for a field trip out of the chamber.

It is equally, “dangerous” for the impression to be created that majority of us do not come to the chamber early, rather we have only few people coming late to the House.

Mr. Kwame Agbodza has been pointing out the issues of late start of the House for almost a month now, lamenting over a situation where school children travel overnight from the North and other parts of the country only to meet them start proceedings late.

These children get “here as early as 9:00am they do not see MPs they go back”, what impression do we think they would have about MPs Whiles the leave the chamber around 11:00am, “we have not started sitting”, he lamented.

Meanwhile the Speaker Professor Mike Oquaye commended the Adaklu legislator for raising the issue on the floor of the House.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament for Kumbungu in the Northern region, Ras Mubarak has descended heavily on Soldiers who destroyed properties belonging to alleged sand winners from the white Volta area in the Northern Region.

The MP noted that the Soldiers and their instructors took the law into their own hands.

According to him, Section five of the Minerals Act, Act 900 clearly made provisions for the actions to be taken if the people go contrary to the law.

Section five provides for the seizure and prosecution of offenders.

Ras Mubarak urged Ghanaian Soldiers not to allow themselves to be used by politicians.

He urged that the law be followed as stipulated.

His comments follows the burning of trucks excavators belonging to some sand winners near rivers bodies in the Northern Region.

By Christian Kpesese/ ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has accused the Nana Akufo-Addo led New Patriotic Party government of lacking priority in solving the country’s challenges.

According to him government’s choice to allocate huge sums of money to sectors with less critical issues such as Special Development Ministry for creation of a website attests to the fact that government lacks priority.

Mr Ablakwa made the observation on Metro TV’s Good Morning show on Friday which discussed a complaint by the Works and Housing Minister, Samuel Atta Akyea that the GHC 5.5 million budgetary allocation to the Ministry in the 2018 budget was paltry.

The Minority spokesperson on the Foreign Affairs Committee of Parliament has therefore urged government to adequately resource the Ministry to prepare in order to contain the coming rainy season.

By Christian Kpesese/ ghanamps.com.

National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga Central constituency in the Upper East region, Isaac Adongo has urged President Akufo-Addo to think of Ghana beyond basic issues affecting the country before thinking big.

According to him it is important for the President to think of Ghana hunger, schools under trees, armed robbery, floods among others before talking about Ghana beyond aid.

He stated that both the President and his advisors are confused because the much talked about Ghana beyond aid mantra has no policy document backing it.

The first time vocal lawmaker opined that such a vision has the buy in of all stakeholders as a national consensus before beginning to make much noise about it.

Mr Isaac Adongo challenged the President to produce a strategic plan outlining the objective of his much talk about Ghana beyond aid agenda.

By Christian Kpesese/ ghanamps.com