News:
November 26, 2024
In a Memo to the Rt. Hon Speaker Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin dated Monday, November 25, 2024, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson “Majority Leader” urged the Speaker to reject the request for the House to be recalled to consider outstanding public business.
According to him the petition has not satisfied the threshold and requirement under Article 112 (3) of the constitution and order 53 (1) of the standing order which requires signatures of fifteen percent of members of parliament to trigger a recall of Parliament.
And the request is premised on an appeal to the Speaker to exercise his discretion to recall parliament to consider what they have termed “high priority” government business and enumerated the said businesses.
“Based on the petitioner’s own request, you are not obliged to recall parliament, since they have not demonstrated that there is any emergency nor urgent government business to warrant a recall of Parliament, with barely eleven (11) remaining days to the crucial 2024 General Election”.
In addition, Mr. Speaker with your years of experience as lawmaker you are familiar with the demands and rigors of parliamentary elections with MPs from both sides of the House in their constituencies having critical engagements.
“Rt. Hon Speaker the petitioner proposed Thursday, November 28 and Friday, November 29, 2024 the dates for these ill-fated and ill-timed recall. Should this request be granted, not only will members of parliament be required to truncate their important engagement with electorate, but members will have to contend with logistical and other challenges to commute over long distance, difficult and hard-to-reach constituencies to Accra”.
Members will have less than a week to conclude their campaign and train polling agents and make key logistical and other election-day arrangements and will be to the disadvantage to MPs and such situation is most unfair.
Meanwhile, this will be the fourth time in 2024 alone that the NPP parliamentary caucus will be requesting an urgent recall of the House and will be recalled that previously those urgent meetings many of the business were listed but at the end they, were abandoned.
They failed to mobilise up to thirty (30) members of Parliament on their side to transact business on the floor. This was the reason why they failed to show up in the chamber in the end, Mr. Speaker was compelled to adjourn the House indefinitely.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com