News:
May 2, 2019
Member of Parliament for Suhum, Fredrick Opare Ansah is calling on the legislative body to up its game when it comes to oversight function to ensure laws passed by Ghana’s Parliament are enforced to its latter and spirit,.
According to the Suhum lawmaker the issue of what happens after Parliament passes its law, implementing and enforcement of laws to its latter and spirit is relevant.
“We need an internal mechanism in Parliament to ensure that these laws being passed are being implemented”.
Again, it is the ultimate responsibility of the Executive arm of government to ensure that things are being executed according to the laws “we” pass, and our oversight function is to ensure that these things are happening, we know Parliament has been a “bit weaker in its oversight function”.
“It is time to strengthen our oversight function to ensure that, the laws are enforced as we anticipated when we were passing the laws”.
In an interview, he recall an instance where the finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta was brought to the House to answer why certain provisions that were made were not being implemented by the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
“He came and gave very cogent explanation, it has advised us on how we legislate in terms of the need for things to be put in place to make sure things are captured in the law. Hence my thinking and proposal for the amendment that say the Right to Information (RTI) should be given some twelve months delayed whiles things are put in place”.
In addition, I recall when we pass the law to have persons who are physically challenged to have access to public places, we gave a moratorium to 2015 to enable the necessary modification to be made to all public places and buildings as at now, I do not think all public places and buildings have been complied with.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com