Month: November 2018

A Nigeria Senator, a member of the Sub-regional Community Parliament, Foster Ogola has urged countries in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament to present country reports that are current and robust.

He single out Liberia for praise, for presenting a current report reflecting current development in that country.

“The missing sixteen billion Liberian dollars, is something that their government has come out to refute but it occurred this year, we heard about it the news and has been reported”.

Mr. Foster Ogola made this remarks when Liberia, Ghana, Sierra Leone and Senegal presented their country report on Monday 19th November, 2018.

Again we accept the reports presented by the other countries but they are mainly 2016/17, “what has happened to ten months of 2018, I believe the country report should be more robust and up today”

The purpose of this country report system is to ensure that we have a peer review mechanism and want to identify countries that are sinking into problem and see how ECOWAS can intervene, if the report are overdue two years behind it is difficult to get intervention from ECOWAs or the Parliament, he pointed out.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Leader of Liberian delegation to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, Edwin Melvin Snowe Junior has appealed to members presenting country reports to focus more on the written text.

According to the leader of the Liberian delegation it is not right for presenters of country report to go outside the written text they are presenting by taking more hours.

He made particular reference to Senegal, when Abdoulaye Vilane was presenting his country report and took more than the stipulated twenty five minutes given by the fourth Deputy Speaker  Orlando Pereira Dias.

Most MPs started clapping in protest to signify to Abdoulaye Vilane to leave the stage, but he did not agree with them and went ahead with his country report until he was through with it.

Mr. Abdoulaye Vilane said, “you just want me to stop reading I have three issues I need to touch on, it is important for you to listen to me well we have to show our pride, I do not know why you are making such noise, is there a problem with my text?”

Fourth Deputy Speaker Orlando Pereira Dias had to appeal to MPs to allow the Senegal representative to conclude his presentation.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Members of Parliament (MPs), in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)   sought for more explanation as to what led to the removal of former chairperson of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Charlotte Osei and her two deputies.

This was when the Bawku Central legislator, Mahama Ayariga who is a member of the community legislature, presented Ghana’s country report and touched on the removal of the former EC chair.

“In the year under review, the electoral landscape witnessed a major shake-up in both structure and form of the National Electoral Commission. Upon a petition filed to the President of the Republic and subsequent activation and subject of the petition to a constitutional process, the chairperson of the EC, Ms Charlotte Osei was removed from office and a successor, Mrs. Jean Mensah, appointed. Two Deputy Chairpersons of the Electoral Commission were also removed from office and replaced”.

Mr. Mahama Ayariga explained to his colleagues that the removal of the former EC boss was not during the conduct of the general elections of Ghana, “it has to do with the administration of the commission itself”.

“People may disagree with some content of the petition and the judgment of the committee, but once the committee comes to that conclusion the President would have to act”, he pointed out.

Most MPs who express concern about the removal of the former EC of Ghana, indicated that with the sub region most countries regard Ghana as a role model when it comes to conduct of election and were worried about the development.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament (MP) for Adaklu Governs Kwame Agbodza has expressed his disappointment in the Speaker Aaron Michael Oquaye for failing to recognize him on the floor of the House when he stood up.

According to the Adaklu lawmaker, Speaker Oquaye is the, “worst Speaker ever”, in the history of Ghana’s democracy.

The MP was on his feet to draw attention of the Speaker to the number of MPs present in the chamber, in respect to a decision the House was going to take on the constitutional instrument 109 currently before the House.

He noted that the Speaker was about putting a question on the report of the Subsidiary Legislation Committee, presented by its chairman Mahama Ayariga on the creation of the new regions.

On his part, the Majority leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu indicated that the action of the Adaklu MP is unacceptable and should not be tolerated.

He further cautioned the Minority side to be quite as the camber place is not a “market place”, as he took the floor and there was heckling from the Minority side.

Why should a member say the Speaker is the “worst” today is not the first an MP has been ignored.
“Mr. Speaker when he got up, he spoke not into the microphone and I consider it “gibberish”, that is insulting, you call the speaker the “worst”.

“A person well trained in his house would not pour out such gibberish, the member did not continue otherwise we would have subjected him to the rules of this House. That is misbehavior. Mr. Speaker all of us have at times not been noticed by the Speaker even as Minority leader sometimes as Majority Leader; recently I got up, the Speaker did not recognize me should the heavens collapse and fall on us?

We have seen Speakers and seen Speakers in this House since the days of justice Annan we have seen those  of them who have been very tyrannical in this House, I believe we want to be respected we should measure ourselves and mind the language we use in this House”, he lamented.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Cynthia Mamle Morrison has lamented over the abuse of thirty-three percent of Ghanaian children sexually despite effort being made to promote the rights of children, by eliminating violence and abuse of children.

According to the Minister, the abuse include rape, molestation, touching of private parts, watching pornography, the use of inappropriate language, and dirty jokes.

She further pointed out that one out of every five girls in Ghana is married before their 18th birthday, whiles 14 percent of girls aged 15 to 19 years had begun having children and 29 percent of children under five years  do not have birth certificate.

The Minister made this revelation in a statement on the floor of the House, in the celebration of the United Nations day of the child which falls on every 20th of November.

“We want to build a world where every child is in school, safe from harm and can fulfill their potential; the celebration calls for people in the streets, on social media, in boardrooms and sporting activities across the country to commit to Go Blue with and for children in a way that amplifies children’s voices”.

In Ghana, we would like to celebrate World Children’s Day through the following ways: Promote World Children’s Day to as many Ghanaians as possible through key media and social media channels and live platforms, she disclosed.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament on Saturday 17th of November 2018, adopted the country reports of Gambia, Niger and Burkina Faso, with first Deputy Speaker Sulaimon Lasun Yussuff presiding.

Mr. Muhamed Magassy who presented the country report of Gambia highlighted on the political and security situation in his country, pointing out that the country continues to enjoy political and economic stability since the change of government in 2017.

Truth reconciliation and reparation commission were appointed and inaugurated to start work to foster social cohesion and recognize the suffering to restore dignity of thousands of victims who were affected directly or indirectly under former President Yaya Jammeh regime.

On political rights and civil liberty, he noted that the constitution guarantees freedom of expression, “over the years state-owned Gambia radio and television service (GRTS) have been monopolized, but with the coming in of the new administration private radio and television station had been licensed and operational”.

Also Gambia delegation to ECOWAS conducted a sanitation activities, a robust one at Gambia-Senegal border in Farafenni on Monday 30th April 2018 which brought together all stakeholders from both side of all the two sides. .

He concluded his report and said Gambia is ever committed to the ideals of the sub-regional bloc and shall never relent in its efforts for the integration process of the ECOWAS Community.

Sawani Karimou Presenting the country report on Niger, also touched on the security situation in his country and noted, since the collapse of the Libyan State, Niger a Sahelo-Saharan country is confronted with threats from various pockets of insecurity at its borders.

On free movement of persons and goods he noted that his country has ratified the ECOWAS protocol; however like other countries in the community and efforts by successive governments, border crossing is seriously impeded and the community citizens are extorted.

Last to present its country report for the day was Burkina Faso done by Benao K. Reine Bertille who noted that her country had experienced slight upheaval because of the crises in the Independent National Electoral Commission.

All partied concerned are working together to find a solution, especially as the timetable for the election is almost out; the referendum on the constitution, legislative and Presidential elections.

Security situation in Burkina Faso is yet to improve despite targeted interventions by the defense and security forces, leading to more than four hundred schools being closed and the National Assembly had to meet over the matter in September this year.

“Mr. Speaker, a contingency plan was adopted to support the military, taking into account motivation intelligence and massive rapid exceptional recruitment of a contingent in 2018”.

Members of Parliament pledged to hand over one million (1,000,000) CFA francs to help the defense and security forces in their fight against terrorism.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com