MPs Warn Ministers

MEMBERS OF Parliament yesterday served a strong notice to ministers of state serving under President John Dramani Mahama that their absenteeism and late coming to the House would no more by countenanced. The country�s lawmakers flared up after the Finance and Economic Planning Minister, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, failed to arrive at the House on time to lay some papers on various loan agreements. The minister�s lateness left the MPs with nothing to do, compelling the Deputy Majority Leader, Alhaji Abdul-Rashid Pelpuo, to call for adjournment. However, just as the Subsidiary Legislation Committee Chairman, Kwame Osei-Prempeh from the Minority side, was about to second the motion for adjournment, Dr. Duffuor popped up to lay five loan agreements. Ministers who are part of the executive have been treating the legislature with contempt over the years as they sometimes fail to appear before the House to answer pertinent questions or help Parliament to conduct public business. Outraged by the turn of events, First Deputy Speaker Edward Doe Adjaho, who presided over proceedings yesterday, registered his displeasure about the attitude of ministers towards the business of the House. He said it was unacceptable for the leadership from the majority side in charge of government business to ask MPs to leave their campaign in their constituencies to come and do government business in Parliament, only to come and sit without doing any serious work. Adjaho, who is also the MP for Ave/Avenor, told the leadership from the majority side to let MPs go back to their constituencies if they were not ready to do business. However, Deputy Majority Leader Alhaji Pelpuo indicated it was only Speaker Justice Joyce Bamford-Addo who had the power to call MPs from recess and not the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) leadership in Parliament. But Manhyia MP Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh blamed the leader of government business, Cletus Avoka, for the lackadaisical attitude of ministers towards Parliament. The leader of government business, the Manhyia MP indicated, was to ensure ministers were present in Parliament as and when their services were needed. Obviously not enthused by the blame game, Second Deputy Speaker Prof. Mike Oquaye said it was about time members of the executive or ministers were called to order, stating that their conduct would not be accepted in civilized democracies like the US and UK. �We must let the executive know that they must take this House seriously. Something must be done, sanctions must be seen to be coming from Parliament,� Prof. Oquaye, who is also the MP for Dome/Kwabenya, advocated.