Month: November 2020

Delegations of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, and lawmakers were granted audience on Sunday, November 15, 2020 by Malian Head of State, Bah N’Daw who visited Bissau the capital of Guinea Bissau.

The MPs were in Bissau as part of a delocalized meeting of the parliament, as they congratulated him as the choice of Malian to lead the transition of that country.

In the absence of the Speaker Tunis, the MPs seized the opportunity to offer the Parliament’s condolences on the passing of Malians former Presidents Moussa Traore and Amadou Toumani Toure.

Meanwhile, Speaker of the Community Parliament Rt. Honorable Sidie Mohamed Tunis will travel to Mali in January or February next year for a working and friendship visit. During this trip he would formerly present condolences of the Parliament to the people of Mali.

The Malian Head of State thanked the delegation from the Community Parliament for showing solidarity and compassion and reminded them of the process of building institutions leading to a general election in less than eighteen months.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Members of the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) Parliament paid their last respect to their deceased colleague, Ablom Johnson on Friday in Lome, the Republic of Togo.

At a ceremony hosted by the Togolese National Assembly at their complex, the lawmakers led by the Speaker Rt. Honorable Sidie Mohammed Tunis, joined members of Togo’s National Assembly and other Government officials to bid farewell to the late Johnson.

Members of Parliament who are in Lome for a delocalised meeting of a joint committee were greeted with the sad news of the demise of the lawmaker.

Mr. Abloom Johnson, who died earlier this week, was the third Vice President of the Togolese Parliament.

In an interview after the official funeral ceremony with journalists, Speaker Tunis said that he led members to the funeral to honour their colleague whom he described as a man of the people.

He said that although it is an unfortunate event, the presence of Parliament for a delocalised meeting in Togo, presented an ample opportunity to physically commiserate with the family of their late ‘brother’, Johnson.

“It is always a sad event to lose a loved one. Ablom was not just a member of ECOWAS Parliament, he was also a brother. So now that we are in Lome, Togo and this unfortunate incidence has happened, we believe it is our responsibility as members of ECOWAS Parliament to participate fully in the funeral arrangements”.

Even if we were not here in Lome, we were still going to send a delegation to Togo to pay tribute to the family and console them, he indicated.

He further added that their presence there, is a manifestation of expressing sorrow to the bereaved family and expressed their condolences on behalf of the ECOWAS Parliament.

He described the late lawmaker as a man who was down to earth and who respected everybody: his colleagues and staff.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Immediate past representative of Ghana to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, Fredrick Opare Ansah has said it was not easy combining working in his home parliament and that of the Community located in Abuja Nigeria.

Going down memory lane as the Community Parliament celebrates its twenty years in existence, and haven served in the parliament for nine years, he emphasized that it has not been an easy challenge.

According to him when the Community Parliament is preparing its budget at the same period most of the National Assemblies of member states looking at the financial calendar would be considering their budget.

“I had to shuffle between Ghana’s Parliament and the ECOWAS Parliament. During this period I found myself going back to Accra and Abuja two or three times in a session. I happened to be a member of the Finance Committees at both places, and chairman of a Committee in my home country. Again, I was a rapporteur of a Committee in ECOWAS Parliament”.

In an interview to share memories of his nine years in the Community Parliament, considering that the Parliament is twenty years old, he point out that the work load was not easy and called for the election of members directly to the parliament.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Speaker of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Parliament, Rt. Honourable Sidie Mohamed Tunis has confirmed that one of the key factors they considered in deciding that Guinea Bissau hosts the joint Committee meeting with the ECOWAS Commission to assess the status of COVID-19 pandemic, agricultural production and food insecurity is to soften the dominance of Anglophone and Francophone countries in the Parliament.

Speaker Tunis made this statement during a brief press conference after a closed-door courtesy call on the President of Guinea Bissau, His Excellency Umaro Sissoco Embalo on Monday, November 9, 2020 at the Presidential Palace in Bissau.

Justifying his statement, the Speaker recalled remarks made by the Guinea Bissau President during the last ECOWAS Council of Head of States and Government meeting in which the president appealed to his colleague heads of states to consider hosting their next meeting in Bissau.

As Speaker Tunis took over in March this year, under his leadership, this is the first time the Community Parliament is holding a meeting in a Portuguese speaking country.

He said, he has held meetings in French and English-speaking countries, but this time around sees the need to give priority to a Portuguese speaking country so as to soften the presumed monopoly of Anglophone and Francophone countries in the regional parliament.

And added that, Guinea Bissau is very peaceful like any other West African states, hence the reason he brought  representatives from ECOWAS Parliament, ECOWAS Commission and West Africa Health Organisation (WAHO) to have presentations on salient topic revolving food security and agriculture in the region during the period of COVID-19.

He expressed optimism that the people of Guinea Bissau will benefit greatly in the upcoming deliberations; and thanked them for their hospitality and warmest reception to all delegates who are now in Bissau to witness the committee meeting.

Meanwhile, it is worthy to note that the regional Parliament  under the distinguished leadership of its Speaker, Tunis is conveying a meeting of joint committees on Agriculture, Environment, Water Resources and Sustainable Development/ Industry and Private Sector/ Health/ Energy and Mines/ Social Affairs, Gender and Women Empowerment between Tuesday 10th to Saturday 14th November 2020 to discuss the most vital theme of “ECOWAS food security and agriculture production program and the fight against COVID 19.”.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Ghana’s Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto has said Ghana has been the only country in the West Africa sub-region providing food sources to its neighboring countries during the COVID-19 pandemic era.

He made this remarks on the floor of Parliament when he appeared before the House to brief it on this year’s farmers’ day celebration which ended on Friday, November 6, 2020 at Techiman in the Bono East Region.

He said, in line with this year’s celebration, a whole week had been deducted and scheduled with various activities that would help improve the farmers’ knowledge on modern ways of farming and also how to maximize their revenue.

In an interview with the Minister for Food and Agriculture, he explained that, the farmers’ day cerebration was pushed forward to November instead of its usual first week in December due to the General election scheduled for December 7, 2020.

Dr.  Akoto was in Parliament to make a statement on event and how the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) government appreciate and celebrate Ghanaian farmers on its 36th anniversary celebration.

He used the opportunity to invite the Speaker Professor Aaron Michael Oquaye and Members of Parliament to grace the occasion.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com