Stop desecrating Parliament and apologise to Bagbin – NDC caucus to Afenyo-Markin

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) caucus in Parliament has expressed disappointment with the New Patriotic Congress (NPP) for not appearing in the chamber on Thursday, November 7, 2024. Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, adjourned the House indefinitely on Thursday due to the absence of business for lawmakers to deliberate on, following the failure of the Business Committee to meet and prepare the necessary agenda for the floor.

The recall session, initiated by the NPP caucus, had been expected to address several critical issues. However, as the NPP caucus failed to appear in the chamber, Speaker Bagbin expressed disappointment, noting that their absence stalled proceedings. In his address to the House, Bagbin highlighted that without committee input and an agenda, the session could not proceed as planned.

In a media interview, the NPP caucus, led by the Effutu Member of Parliament (MP), Alexander Afenyo-Markin, accused the Speaker of supervising chaos in the chamber, which they said was undermining the country’s democracy. He also stated that Bagbin was “setting the country on fire,” for which reason he should demonstrate statesmanship.

But in a statement, signed and issued by Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Deputy Minority Leader and MP for Ellembelle on Friday, November 8, the NDC caucus noted that Afenyo-Markin attacked the Speaker in very unsavoury and unparliamentary terms.

The statement added that the NDC caucus demands “an immediate and unqualified apology from Afenyo-Markin for the unwarranted attacks which are deliberately calculated to lower the office of the Speaker of Parliament in the eyes of right-thinking Ghanaians.”

“We wish to state for the record that the Rt. Hon. Speaker of Parliament has done no wrong to deserve such unfair and disrespectful attacks from the leader of the NPP. The Speaker has always been firm and resolute in defending the constitution, and he deserves commendation for protecting the sanctity of the Parliament of Ghana and our democratic institutions.”