Mr Haruna Iddrisu, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamale South, has described the current impasse between the NDC and NPP Caucus, over which side constitutes the ‘Majority’ in Parliament, as a constitutional stalemate.
Speaking to the Parliamentary Press Corps moments after Speaker Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin’s indefinite adjournment of the House, Mr Iddrisu said: “It is rightly a constitutional stalemate, and I think that the best forum and the best authority to resolve the political tussle is the Supreme Court of Ghana, giving a true and proper interpretation of Article 97(1)(g) and (h)”.
The Speaker’s decision to adjourn the House indefinitely follows a ruling from the Supreme Court, pursuant to an ex parte application, directing Parliament to recognise and allow the four Members of Parliament, whose seats the Speaker had declared vacant, to duly represent their constituents and conduct full scope of duties of their offices as Members of Parliament, pending the final determination of a suit filed by Mr Alexander Kwamina Afenyo-Markin, the NPP Parliamentary Caucus Leader.
The four Parliamentary seats declared vacant by the Speaker on Thursday, October 17, are Amenfi Central, Fomena, Agona West and Suhum Constituencies, for breaches of Article 9(1)(g) and (h) of the 1992 Constitution by the Members of Parliament (MPs).
Article 97(1) states : “A member of Parliament shall vacate his seat in Parliament – (g) if he leaves the party of which he was a member at the time of his election to Parliament to join another party or seeks to remain in Parliament as an independent member; or (h) if he was elected a member of Parliament as an independent candidate and joins a political party”.
The Speaker’s ruling on Thursday, October 17, was a formal response to the House in relation to a matter of significant parliamentary and constitutional importance, which was brought to the attention of the House on Tuesday, October 15, by Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, the Minority Leader and NDC MP for Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam, pursuant to Order 93 of the Standing Orders of Parliament.
This development has left the NPP Caucus with 135 MPs and the NDC Caucus with 136 MPs.
However, the Supreme Court on Friday, October 19, set aside the Speaker’s ruling and directed him to allow the four affected MPs to participate in the business of the House.
On Tuesday, October 22, Speaker Bagbin made the adjournment of House in formal communication to the House, during which the NDC Caucus occupied the Majority side of the Chamber, while the NPP Caucus retreated to their offices in the Job Six Hundred Building Block of Parliament House.
Before adjourning the House, the Speaker said although the House at its Tuesday’s had the numbers to conduct business, which was definitely far above one third of the Members of Parliament, but the numbers were not sufficient for them to take decisions.
The Speaker noted that he had consulted leadership, and that he was exercising his discretion to decide to suspend the meeting of the House indefinitely.
GNA
