News:
January 29, 2020
A member of the Ghanaian delegation to the sub-regional Community Parliament, Mahama Ayariga has said poor leadership style of the outgoing Speaker Mustapha Cisse Lo resulted in lack of visibility of the fourth legislature.
He noted that the evaluation of a Parliament should include a Speaker and MPs and added that he joined the fourth legislature later by the time the Ghanaian elections were held for a delegation to be constituted; the Community Parliament was already running.
According to Ayariga he is disappointed in the function of the legislature and it is as a result of the fact that the Community Parliament has not been given the needed visibility despite the fact that it has a Supplementary Act that empowers it.
He further argued out in an interview on his assessment of the fourth legislature that ends next month that, debate was never encouraged in the fourth legislature on important sub-regional issues.
“Everything has always been about the Speaker, if we had a hanzard and you go through I am sure about ninety percent of the focus and the voice, would have been about the Speaker and not the MPs. It is quite unfortunate his tenure has ended”.
Mr. Mahama Ayariga was quick to point out that the fifth legislature should run properly and make good impression on ECOWAS citizens in terms of its debate concerning citizens of the sub-region and also holding Heads of States accountable.
In addition, hold the bodies and agencies with ECOWAS responsible, and up to their task, “I expect a better Parliament come February 2020 when we would be inaugurated”
“I expect the style of Parliamentary democracy from the Anglophone countries to have a positive impact on running of the legislature, as the fourth legislature might be influence by the Francophone way of running the legislature”.
He further pointed out that since the Anglophone derived their democracy from the United Kingdom, with the Speaker of the fifth legislature coming from Sierra Leon, he expect a more robust House.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com/Banjul