News:
Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu
November 30, 2021
Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu has categorically stated that, the first Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr. Joseph Osei Owusu did not have a voting right during the time of approving the 2022 annual budget, since the Standing Orders 109 (3) actually State that, “A Deputy Speaker or any member presiding shall not retain his original vote while presiding”.
According to him the NPP Majority claims they had 138 members to approve the budget but in this case, order 109 clause 3 disqualifies Joseph Osei Owusu from voting since he was in the chair as Speaker of Parliament but not as MP, therefore in actual sense, 137 NPP Majority member approved the budget but not 138 as they want people to believe.
Mr. Iddrisu added that, going forward, the NPP Majority in Parliament should prepare well, since they are not going to have things easy at all, because the NDC Minority is going to insist that, there is counting and voting on everything the House.
He made these comments at a press conference held in Parliament soon after the overturning of an earlier rejected 2022 budget and approving the budget, Tuesday, November 30, 2021.
“This would pass in history as a dark day for Ghana’s constitutional parliamentary democracy practice, those seeking to govern are seeking to appropriate and reprobate at the same time; we were not in the chamber because we rejected the 2022 budget on Friday which is reflected in the votes and proceedings; I am happy that the Majority Leader in his submission accepted that we are 137”.
Again, to avoid humiliating defeat, they walked out because they had 137 members like we also have and that would have led to a lost as we have in the constitution and standing orders, “who ask for a division and walks out?”
“Today I am disappointed in the conduct of the first Deputy Speaker having include himself and exercise a vote in other to meet their mandate 138 without respect to our standing orders and the 1992 constitution”.
Mr. Iddrisu indicated that the Majority side consulted their side on Tuesday, November 30, 2021 in the morning they ask us to approve the budget subject to concession; and questioned where the concessions were in the budget.
“If there were concessions, revise the budget to reflect those concessions; we stand with that position and should reflect in the text. And we had a stalemate on the matter of E-Levy. Our original position was that no, no, no to the levy, they explained to us the difficulties to the economy and needed some additional revenues. They said they were not prepared to review the E-Levy, and then we decided that they should stand alone with it. We asked them to adjust the threshold of 100 Ghana upwards they said they were not prepared to do that”.
All because we wanted to inherit a healthy economy in the foreseeable future by John Mahama in 2025, “we would address a full scale press conference at the appropriate time we needed to let Ghanaians know where we stand”.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com