The Speaker of Parliament, Alban S.K. Bagbin, has once again adjourned sittings indefinitely following the lack of quorum to take decisions.
Parliament reconvened on Thursday morning following a recall.
Adjourning the sittings indefinitely, the Speaker said the Business Committee has not presented anything before the house to transact and based on their absence and the prevailing circumstances, he is compelled once again to adjourn the house.
Parliament has been in the news for some time now following their legal tussle with the judiciary over the speaker’s decision to declare four seats vacant.
Background
The Speaker on October 22, 2024, adjourned the house indefinitely.
However, due to a request by Members of Parliament to recall the House following the indefinite adjournment, the Speaker of Parliament last week indicated that his office has already started processes to recall the House in early November.
According to the Speaker, the recall is made pursuant to Article 112 (3) of Ghana’s Constitution and Standing Orders 5 and 53, allowing the Speaker to summon Parliament as needed in the public interest.
The session will commence at 10 a.m. at the Accra International Conference Centre, the temporary venue for Parliamentary sittings while the main House undergoes renovations.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Caucus in Parliament has requested the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, to summon Parliament to consider urgent government business.
They said considering constitutional and statutory provisions of article 112 (3) of the Constitution and the Standing Order 58, the Speaker must summon the House to a meeting within a seven-day period.
That, they believed, would enable the government to discharge its constitutional and democratic obligations to the people of Ghana.
The petition garnered a number of signatories who are all members of the NPP Caucus.
Article 112(3) of the Constitution states: “Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, fifteen per cent of members of Parliament may request a meeting of Parliament and the Speaker shall, within seven days after the receipt of the request, summon Parliament.”
Also, Standing Order 53(1), reiterates: “Despite any other provision, fifteen per cent of the members of Parliament may request a meeting of Parliament and the Speaker shall, within seven days after the receipt after the request, summon Parliament.”
In addition, Standing Order 53(2), further stipulates: “Parliament shall convene within seven days after the issuance of the notice of summons.”