Drama in Parliament

There was drama in Parliament House yesterday when the Minority side refused to rise up in accordance with the rules of the House as the Speaker bowed out.

This followed the persistent demand on the Speaker by the Minority to conduct a head count after they had challenged a ruling which threatened to set both sides of Parliament on a collision course.

As the Minority registered their protest by banging on their tables and shouting, the Speaker, Mr Peter Ala Adjetey, suspended sitting for a while and left the chamber. The Minority who, by that time, outnumbered the Majority took the Speaker's action as a ploy to buy time.

When the Speaker rose to move out of the chamber, the Minority refused to rise up in accordance with the rules of the House. The Speaker's departure from the chamber brought more confusion as members started verbal exchanges challenging each others' behaviour.

The bone of contention was the Majority's decision that Ministers who are Members of Parliament should be included on the Select Committees of the House. In the previous Parliament, Ministers who were members of the House were excluded from such committees because it was felt that as part of the executive, they cannot be their own judges.

According to the majority, Ministers who are members of Parliament, can belong to a committee of the House as stipulated in the Standing Orders. Besides, the decision was firmly rooted in the fact that the constitution is a hybrid which can empower the House to make use of innovations even though they are guided by rules.

However, the minority contended that the House has also made use of a number of conventions in the previous Parliament which have come to be accepted as part of the rules of the House.

Tension in the House got to a boiling point when the majority refused a suggestion from the minority that the issue be referred to the leadership of the House for solution. The situation worsened when he majority again teased the minority that they were taking advantage of what the minority could not utilise when they were in the majority in the previous Parliament.

When the question was put at the end of the lengthy debate, the Speaker ruled in favour of the majority which attracted the minority's call for a head count. It was at this stage that more confusion was to follow as Mr J. H . Mensah, the Majority Leader, got up to speak contrary to the rules of the House that when a matter has been ruled upon it should attract no further comment from members.

This attracted more noise from the minority side who thought the Speaker will heed their call for a headcount immediately. But this was not to be. The Speaker who might have felt the House was getting out of control, then announced that he was suspending sitting for sometime to allow tempers to cool down.

This was seen by the minority as an attempt to buy time as the Majority Chief was spotted moving out of the chamber to see if he could mobilise any of their members outside for the count. When sitting resumed later the minority refused to return.

However, the Speaker explained that he had to leave the chamber to allow tempers to cool down before deciding on the next line of action to take but that his action might have been misconstrued by the minority to mean a walk out.

When the Majority Leader was asked to clarify the air, he explained that the minority was still consulting and since it was late in the day the House should adjourn to today (Friday) but if they persist, they can take the headcount.

At a press conference by the minority to explain its stand, Mr A. S. K. Bagbin, Minority Leader, described events of the day as a vindication of his caution to the Speaker and his doubts about his impartiality at the time of his nomination.

Mr Bagbin described the Speaker not only as "an embodiment of the New Patriotic Party but also the heart of it". He said it is part of the rules of the House for a group to challenge a ruling if they are not satisfied. He deplored the attitude of the majority for reneging on their promise to go by conventions of the House.

He said there is no way that the minority will condone illegality and that they believe in the principle of the rule of law, hence their decision to also walk out In an interview with the Graphic later after the sitting, the First Deputy Speaker, Mr Freddie Blay, expressed regret at the incident and blamed the action of the minority on prejudice and lack of trust.

Mr Blay said since the rule of the House enjoins every member to belong to at least a committee, he saw nothing wrong with the decision of the majority to request for Ministers who are members of Parliament to be made members of the Select Committees.