News:
January 12, 2011
The Member of Parliament for Ho West, Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah, has urged government to urgently restructure the MPs research assistants program to ensure its effectiveness.
In his state of the nation’s address on February 19, 2009, President Atta Mills pledged to assign, National Service Personnel to all 230 MPs as research assistants to enable the legislators effectively carry out their legislative functions.
According to the initial plan backing the policy, the research assistants were to be taken through an orientation or training program on relevant research methods to adequately prepare them for their new roles, but the MP says the lack of defined ‘terms of reference’ concerning the work of the research assistants has resulted in their inefficiency.
Hon. Bedzrah’s concerns follow the report that the research assistants attached to the various parliamentarians have been sacked due to the lack of adequate funds to pay them.
Speaking on e.tv Ghana’s Morning Show Wednesday, the Member of Parliament for Ho West, Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah stated that though the government’s program is laudable, it has reneged on carrying out the initial plans of the program, which would equip the Service Personnel to live up to expectation.
He added that a lot of effort should go into the selection of relevant service personnel who are knowledgeable in the area of politics and research, who can help the various MPs in the smooth execution of their work.
“I wonder how an engineering graduate from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology could be assigned to an MP, instead of a graduate of political science who is fairly informed about politics and would be most effective,” he said.
Story by: Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh