News:
January 20, 2021
Deputy Majority Group Leader, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo Markin has urged the Speaker Rt. Hon Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin and the Minority Group Leader in the 8th Parliament to respect their numerical strength and acknowledge them as the Majority caucus.
According to him he thought the ruling of the Speaker would put finality to the confusion that has emerged with reference to us as the Majority group.
At a press conference on Wednesday, January 20, 2021, the Deputy Leader who addressed the media on behalf of the Leader of Government Business noted that, “we want to invite the Speaker to hold this view as such, so that there would be consistency in how we are addressed”.
Again Majority Leader is the Leader of the House, “we are in government”, therefore, he is the Leader of Government Business; this matter must be settled, and they are respected on this issue.
As the Majority side with the Fomena MP wanting to do business with them they are more than ready to build consensus, this has been the position of Majority Leader, then President elect and current Speaker.
He gave some historical antecedent in 2009 when the then CPP MP, Samia Yaba Christina Nkrumah took a position that she would not want to belong to either the Majority or the Minority side of the House.
The current Speaker, then Majority Leader invited Speaker Joycelin Branford Addo to rule on the matter. Samia Nkrumah then opted to be with the Majority side of the House and is on record.
Additionally, back then the total number of the House was 230 and NDC needed a magical number of 116 of which they did not have but had Independent and PNC members joining to give them that numerical strength.
“So we find it difficult that, suddenly the issue of who is the Majority caucus or group and all that, the Standing Orders are very clear the practice and convention we have Minority Leader under rule 8 same rule Majority Leader”.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com