Month: March 2022

Governance institutions in developing countries must priorities the preservation of institutional experiences and memories, the Speaker of Parliament Alban S. K Bagbin has advocated.

This, he said, was necessary for continuity whiles also ensuring that people have access to accurate historical facts and data.

The Speaker made this remark during a courtesy call on him by a delegation from the Sierra Leonean Parliamentary Service Commission led by Mr. Hassan Abdul Sesay, opposition whip for the Sierra Leonean parliament.

The delegation is in the country among other things to interact with their counterparts here in Ghana, learn best practice and exchange ideas. The team is hoping to use this visit to create a platform for networking between the parliaments of both countries.

Speaker Bagbin in welcoming the delegation called for promotion of similar exchange visits among parliamentary commissions and services across the continent.

He said there is the need for the major stakeholders of the legislature in Ghana to commence discussions around establishing a Council modeled like the council of state to advise and guide the Speaker and Members of Parliament to effectively discharge their duties.

The leader of the Sierra Leonean delegation, Hassan Abdul Sesay commended Speaker Bagbin for his exemplary leadership. He said Ghana has a lot of democratic credentials to share particularly building strong and independent institutions.

Cardinal among the reasons for their visit, he said, was to learn the various schemes and legislations put in place to determine the conditions of service of members retiring from parliament.

Ghanamps.com

Chairman of the Community’s Parliament Committee on Political Affairs, Peace, Security and African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe Junior has revealed that Mali, Guinea Conakry and Burkina Faso would be visited after the Extraordinary Session.

According to him the Speaker Rt. Hon Sidie Mohammed Tunis has confirmed that immediately after the Liberia Monrovia Session there would be a visitation as the Session would come up with a resolution.

For instance, he gave an example of ECOWAS Parliament delegation in Mali when the coup occurred it was headed by Mahama Ayariga and when he reported to the Parliament of the development, he was airlifted.

Again, in Sierra Leon, the ECOWAS Parliament went there to mediate and settle their problem when the two main political parties had issues and could not form a government and emphasised that the Parliament has been playing critical role within the West African sub-region.

“We would be discussing the failed coup in Guinea Bissau, what led to that, how were they repelled, those are things that we need to look at. You see what is happing in Ukraine and Russian, if we allow this to go down our region and flips out of our hands we do not know what is going to happen. Do not forget we have Russian troops today in Mali”.

And added that what is happening in Ukraine if not arrested might trickle down in the region. The community parliament has condemned what is happening in Ukraine,  “we stand by the government of Ukraine do not forget we have the Russians next in Mali what about if that geo-politics begins to have a trickle-down effect in the region, the very Russians begin to give arms to the insurgence.

He noted that it would undermine “our” peace and security and that is why they have to look at the situation now.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Leader of the Liberian delegation to the Community Parliament, Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe Junior has said all is set for the upcoming Seminar and Extraordinary Session to be held in Liberia starting this week.

According to him the seminar is expected to center on the current political and security situation within the West African sub-region.

In a telephone interview, it came up clearly that,  meetings of the ECOWAS Parliament has to compete with very important assignments of some member states parliament, a point in case is the Ghanaian Parliament that has a hanged parliament 137 :137 with an independent candidate, doing business with the Majority adding up to 138.

There is an Electronic Transfer Bill 2021yet to be passed with each side counting strongly on their numbers to either pass or reject the bill.

“We could continue to have this kind of problems because the first commitment is to our National Assemblies and ECOWAS Parliament becomes second, not until the Community Parliament can hold direct elections”.

And added that they are looking forward to seeing the Ghanaian delegation, as Mahama Ayariga First Rapporteur to the Committee on Political Affairs, Peace, Security and African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) has a key role to play in Liberia and is expected to make a presentation.

Another situation, he pointed out is that of the Nigerian lawmakers to the Community Parliament who are expected to vote on a constitutional reform this week, and as soon as that is done, they would move to Liberia over the weekend.

“One of our best institutions in our sub-region,  when it comes to issues of political and security  studies is the Kofi Annan Peace Keeping Institute in Ghana,  so we have invited the director General of the institute who would be presenting a paper”.

Senator Snowe further pointed out that Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, who has a long history in mediation and security situation in the sub-region and the rest of the continent, would be presenting a paper, same with the former Nigerian President ECOWAS mediator on Mali H. E.  Good Luck Jonathan would present a paper.

And the moderator of the session would be Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, “we would be looking at ECOWAS vision 2050; how does it conflict with the current political and security situation in the region, we are not looking at the future of ECOWAS and that future is being interrupted by barrages of coups over throw and constitutional changes leading to third term; we need to look at that, how does that threaten the future of ECOWAS”.

The Extraordinary Session which would be the Committee of the whole would have the Commissioner of Political Affairs for them to look into the nitty-gritty in other to look at the root cause of the current development within the sub-region and how they can remedy them.

He used the opportunity to thank the President of Liberia H. E. George Manneh Oppong Weah for his assistance, same with the governor of Liberia. “We look forward to full participation of the Liberian public”, he added.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States Parliament’s (ECOWAS) Committee on Political Affairs, Peace, Security and African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), Edwin Melvin Snowe Junior has revealed that lawmakers from Mali, Guinea Conakry and Burkina Faso would be invited to the upcoming seminar and Extraordinary meeting to be held in Liberia which would commence this week.

According to him the invitation is being extended for lawmakers to be informed on happenings in the three member states that had experience coup; Mali, Guinea Conakry and Burkina Faso.

Mr. Edwin Snowe in a telephone interview at his base in Liberia on Monday, March 1, 2022 noted that in the case of Mali the president wanted to temper with the result of their parliamentary election that led to a popular uprising which was later followed by a coup.

While in the case of Guinea Conakry, the president sought a third term through a constitutional reform and was supported by the parliament, then the coup.

In the case of Burkina Faso, the military noted that the president was not doing enough to fight the insurgency; they over threw the government and pointed out that these are three different scenarios.

“We need to find the actors, and confront the actors by holding the bull by the horn then we can find solution. We are also inviting civil society members from those countries”.

As to whether MPs who were members of the National Assembly before it was dissolved would be invited, he responded in the affirmative and noted that in the case of Burkina Faso they are inviting them to give their perspective of what happened, as they are citizens of the sub-region despite the fact that their National Assembly may be dissolved.

 In the case of Mali, they have the CNT the first group before the Parliament was dissolved, “we have had cases where Mali is on sanction now by ECOWAS but all of the staff of Mali that work for ECOWAS Commission remain within their employment of ECOWAS send by the previous government to work as ECOWAS Commissioner at the Commission same with Guinea Conakry, Same with Burkina Faso”.

And was quick to point out that,  but when you come to the Parliament, the MPs are excluded from representing their county, “so we want to have a conversation; we are not violating any ECOWAS Protocols neither are we disrespecting the Authority of Heads of States, but we need to hear from the actors”.

“We need to ask Guinea Conakry MPs, why did you vote on third term constitutional reform? You knew the objective of the former president was to seek a third term, why were you coerced to it? So let us face our peers those were our colleagues from the parliament”.

Again, he added that they should hear  from them as to  why they did it and if they  feel the reason is not sufficient and justified, they  can caution them that, “ you are the cause and  part of the situation, we must be able to remedy the situation”, he emphasised.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com