The Minority in Parliament has hit back at the Majority caucus for describing the Speaker’s adjournment of the House as abrupt.
According to the 1st Deputy Minority Whip, Ahmed Ibrahim, the Speaker was acting within his constitutional mandate to adjourn the House; hence, the argument by the Majority side does not hold water.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story, he explained that the leadership of the House was fully aware that the Parliament would be adjourned, and he did not understand why the majority side was taking such a stance.
“Adjournment lies in the bosom of the speaker. How can I qualify to say he is wrong and this is something that was agreed upon at the conclave and we knew the speaker was going to adjourn at four o’clock. At four o’clock because he couldn’t finish the business that was supposed to be done, he [Speaker] said he would close at 5 then he ended up adjourning at 7,” he said.
His comments follow the Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, requesting for an extraordinary sitting of Parliament barely 24 hours after the House was adjourned.
In a memo addressed to Speaker Alban Bagbin and obtained by myjoyonline.com, Mr Afenyo-Markin cited five legal bases to support this demand, urging the Speaker to summon Parliament within a seven-day period.
“Considering the constitutional and statutory provision cited above, and in the exercise of our rights as Members of Parliament, we respectfully urge you to summon Parliament for an extraordinary session within the stipulated seven-day period.”
Meanwhile, Mr Ibrahim said he is yet to confirm if the Speaker has indeed received the memo.
Source: myjoyonline.com
