News:
May 16, 2022
As plans are far advanced to open Ghana’s Parliamentary Committee meetings to the media and the public when the revised Standing Orders of the House is approved, Clerk to Parliament Mr Cyril Kwabena Nsiah has admonished members of the Parliamentary Press Corps to specialize.
According to him the various Committees in Parliament have their independent budget and they decide on where they are going and the team they want to go with. To this, estimates is done and submitted to the Speaker who approves it and sent to the Clerk’s office for processing.
He made this known at a capacity building workshop for members of the Parliamentary Press Corps (PPC), where the Dean appealed that the Committees of Parliament should take a member or two of the members of the PPC along so that they share whatever information with their colleagues for publication.
“It’s important to bring this to the attention of the committees and it would not be a problem; our standing orders which is being worked on and approved by the House committee meetings are supposed to be open to the public. As at now all committee meetings are closed to the public, unless the chair declares it open”.
And gave an example of what pertains at the Public Account and Appointment Committee and as done in several other countries. “You have to specialize in areas like financial, environment and other committees, and then they would get to know you as you write good stories for them naturally they carry you along when they are traveling”.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com