A member of the Health Committee, Alexander Akwasi Acquah joined a delegation on the Food and Drugs Authority officials to asses some major pharmaceutical companies in India.
Aimed at renewing their licensing to continue supplying to Ghana, the Akim Oda MP commended the Chief Executive of Food and Drugs Authority and her officials for the strenuous scrutiny they took these pharmaceutical companies through in order to protecting the average Ghanaian from being served substandard medications.
The seriousness and the eagerness of the pharmaceutical companies’ officials attest to how important the Ghanaian market is to them.
The Secretary General of the Community Parliament John Azumah is advocating for ECOWAS Parliament’s own dedicated Members of Parliament (MPs) in the wake of crusade to get MPs directly elected to the House.
Though many considered the idea laudable, some critics believe the idea would have financial implications to member states hence are skeptical.
But Mr. John Azumah noted that as the chief administrator of the Community Parliament at the fore front supporting Rt. Hon Speakers to achieve this, “when you talk of directly elected members then it throws out so many issues and those who do not want it pick on the difficult areas of direct election and say it is not possible”.
Hon Awaji-Inombek Abiante
According to him, people question, how elections of such can be organized for example in a country like Nigeria; while others also look at difficulties some member states face in financing their own elections. As such it would be nearly impossible for such countries to directly elect MPs to come to the regional parliament.
He however emphasized that he is not in any way down playing the lawmakers in the parliament as they are very seasoned and influential and have contributed greatly to moving the integration agenda forward.
Again, as human when you are playing a dual role it sucks up your energy; these are MPs who first and foremost are lawmakers in the various member states National Assemblies, they have to sustain their membership in their national parliament before belonging to the sub-regional parliament.
So, it is automatic that they will give attention to their primary constituency which is their National Parliament and then the other one plays second fiddle.
“So we suffer, when there is crises in the sub-region and we need a full House your guess is as good as mine; especially when sessions are going on in the various member states and critical issues are being discussed. For instance, they are having budget periods; the budget period in the West African sub-region is the same period getting to the end of the year”.
For instance, Ghana and Nigeria are also having their budget sessions in their National Assemblies, how do you get same person in Abuja-Nigeria to have a dedicated time to look critically into Community budget, whiles his or her home country is undergoing same exercise.
Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe J.
Mr. John Azumah added that it is a gray area that needs attention, either than that the lawmakers are wonderful, intelligent and experience people who make very valuable contributions so far to the agenda of moving the integration process forward.
He disclosed that similar thing occurred in the European Parliament (EU), where they used their national parliament’s electoral college system which accommodated its citizens interested in being the EU Parliament.
EU Parliament also faced the issues of finance but they were able to put themselves together and started having direct elections and were no longer passing it through a national college system. It’s something the sub-region can look at; no need to reinvent the wheels.
He was however quick to point out that the situation on the ground currently is not the best; saying there are economic difficulties as a result of COVID-19 outbreak, the Ukraine-Russia war and the economic meltdown of the United States of America which has affected us.
And further added that as a bloc we cannot continue with the dual role where we have lawmakers who belong to their National Assembly at the same time serving the Community bloc, hence the need for dedicated law makers.
Speaker of ECOWAS parliament
Mr. John Azumah further revealed and showed Ghanamps.com a photo album of a good gesture showed by the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, under former President Buhari and praised him for single handedly building a befitting edifies for the Community Parliament in Abuja Nigeria when he was called upon way back in 2019.
“That is a great man, he did not sink that amount of money to build the edifies for wall geckos to inhabit; he had something at the back of his mind that he will put people who would work for the region and would work and pay for the resources that is being committed to it”.
“Also you need people who are committed, you cannot continue this way and get results and “for me the fact that one Head of State has agreed to do this thing for us means that we are getting towards direct election where we would have our own dedicated place and longer sessions where we would revisit all the protocols since the bloc was establish in 1975”.
Some of the protocols have been overtaken by technology; when it comes to climate change, if you look at those protocols they do not stand again. They have been washed away, we need a group that can seat down and go through using the current situation to come up with proper laws, proper Acts to bind our dealings with climate change.
The clerk of Ghana’s Parliament Cyril Kwabena Oteng Nsiah per section 3 of the constitution of Ghana (Amendment) Act, 1996 (Act 527) has formerly written to the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission Jean A. Mensah formally notifying her of occurrence of a vacancy in the Assin North constituency.
According to him this was necessitated by the judgment of the Supreme Court on Wednesday, May 17, 2023 with writ No J1/11/2022 issued in respect of James Gyakye Quayson in the case of Michael Ankomah Nimfah vrs James Gyakye Quayson.
The Electoral Commission of Ghana and The Attorney-General have requested the EC to take appropriate consequential actions as required by law in a letter to the EC.
The Secretary General of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, John Azumah, has pointed out that for the blocs’ integration to be successful its very key for the Community citizens to be multilingual especially in the three official languages English, French and Portuguese.
According to him, he has come to realise that language is very critical in a multicultural environment and in the integration process even bringing countries together and bringing peace also to a large extent.
And further added that when you understand each other, the issue of suspicion minimizes and one can communicate with their colleagues when they meet for the first time. “What I would say is that I have met my brother or sister; where you cannot communicate you need to get a third party and that breeds suspicion”.
Again, you would question; am I dealing with the right person, am I at the right place? These, the administrative head of the Community Parliament emphasized make language very essential in the integration architecture and agenda.
He thus advised that it is important to encourage member states to deepen the study of language especially the three languages that are our official languages. Again Ghana and Nigeria we are lackadaisical in the learning of language, saying we think that probably we are okay; maybe it is the British attitude that English is ruling the world and if you can speak the Queens language and you have the right words then you are good to go.
He expressed worry that the French speaking countries (Francophone) in the sub-region take the study of language more seriously such that English is compulsory up to the University level but it’s not the case in the English speaking countries (Anglophones) in the sub-region).
Mr. Azumah further pointed out that Nigeria is the biggest economy in Africa; very powerful and rich; they can stay in their country without moving out and they will be comfortable they have 36 states including the FTC. And if they start trading among themselves in their states, they do not need any body. Despite that, it is not the ideal thing to do.
Recounting his schooling days, Mr. Azumah noted that he started as a language student at the University of Ghana, where he did French in the Six form and Spanish in Legon for one year.
Years back Ghana had a language college at Somanya, which taught French and was supported by the French government and others. But governments came and did not give it priority and was converted into one of the post secondary schools.
So specialization was taken away and it turns out that, only people who are interested in language would try to find where to get the learning done, except those at the frontiers of our countries, they make the efforts. For instance, Ewes in Togo and Ghana, same with Northern Ghana and Burkina Faso. So they are able to express interest in it. It is not the same with those in the interior.
He also noted that Gambia is doing well because of Senegal, and re-emphaised the need to do something because moving forward and with the coming of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) that people need to have the opportunity of doing business without difficulties, language comes very handy.
According to him though there are interpreters, they are not sufficient and if we can have a staff speaking Portuguese, English and French you would see how much productivity we would come out with and we would save cost because you will understand documents coming in Portuguese and act on them.
Mr. Azumah recounted how the immediate past president of the ECOWAS Commission, Jean-Claude Kassi Brou when he appeared before the Community Parliament could express himself in French, English and Portuguese and was given standing ovation. He did not need to pay and engage an interpreter hugely to work on Portuguese document that is important”.
He gave another example when he visited the European Union Parliament somewhere in 2012 in their interaction with their fellow staffs there, each of them could speak a minimum of four European languages.
“One young man came in and spoke so well and beautifully, when I ask he said he is a Polish, so for integration process to work language is very key”, he emphasised.
Aimed at renewing their licensing to continue supplying to Ghana, the Akim Oda MP commended the Chief Executive of Food and Drugs Authority and her officials for the strenuous scrutiny they took these pharmaceutical companies through in order to protecting the average Ghanaian from being served substandard medications.
So, it is automatic that they will give attention to their primary constituency which is their National Parliament and then the other one plays second fiddle.
And further added that when you understand each other, the issue of suspicion minimizes and one can communicate with their colleagues when they meet for the first time. “What I would say is that I have met my brother or sister; where you cannot communicate you need to get a third party and that breeds suspicion”.
He expressed worry that the French speaking countries (Francophone) in the sub-region take the study of language more seriously such that English is compulsory up to the University level but it’s not the case in the English speaking countries (Anglophones) in the sub-region).