Parliament resumes today

Parliament will later today [Wednesday, April 8, 2020] resume sittings. This follows a notice from the Speaker recalling members to the House to consider urgent business.

The House was suspended last Saturday amidst controversy with the Minority calling the act by the Speaker illegal. The Finance Minister is expected to present a statement to the House that will provide details of the government’s Cornavirus Alleviation Programme.

Before the suspension, the House approved a request to lower the cap on the Stabilization Fund from $300 million to $100 million. Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu said the decision to recall Parliament was done without a consensus.

He said he had not been able to reach the Minority Leader, Haruna Idrissu, on the matter. “You can only build consensus with people who avail themselves. I have called the Minority leader several times…his phone is eternally engaged and I believe there must be a purpose to that.”

The Majority Leader added that he has also sent text messages but “for the first time he [Haruna Iddrisu] has refused to relay back to me.” His comments come on the back of tensions between the two caucuses following the suspension of sitting instead of an indefinite adjournment.

The Minority Leader accused Mr. Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu of misleading the Speaker of Parliament; a claim Mr. the Majority Leader denied. Meanwhile, the Minority in Parliament say they will only abide by the recall of legislators if proceedings remain focused on the coronavirus pandemic, James Avedzi, the Deputy Minority Leader, has said.

“If this recall is about the COVID-19 pandemic, we are prepared to meet but not any other business,” Mr. Avedzi stated. “Once the issue is something that Minority has been calling for all throughout last week, and that is the issue for which the house is being recalled to attend, we the Minority will attend sitting,” he added.