A former Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Kenneth Dzirasah has advised Members of the yet-to-be inaugurated 8th Parliament to learn to work together as a unit to make the House a success.
According to him, the 8th Parliament should learn to “build bridges, trade horses, give and take. After all, it is the nation that stands to suffer or to gain when we are able to reconcile ourselves properly.”
Speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show, Mr. Dzirasah stated that “what I will seriously recommend, to drive the parliamentary agenda is one of horse-trading. We have to give and take, and this must start with the choice of the Speaker. The convention where the majority proposes a Speaker has virtually collapsed because there is no [clear] majority.”
“Now there may be surprises, particularly in the situation where we are still waiting for certain court decisions in respect of the status of some members-elect. We cannot argue with certainty on who becomes majority or minority until the 6th of January. So it is important for us to encourage horse-trading,” he added.
He further stated that although the case of the hung Parliament might make things difficult, the Members of Parliament-elect should make it a point to work together for the greater good.
“They should organize themselves as matured individuals in whose hands the destiny of the nation is being entrusted. That should be the motive, spirit, and the conduct of the 8th Parliament.”
Mr. Dzirasah gave the advice on the back of the dilemma surrounding the selection of leaders for the 8th Parliament.
The NDC has insisted that its independently-collated results show it has grabbed the majority of seats in the next Parliament of Ghana.
In contrast to 2016 where the NPP secured a record majority with 169 seats in Parliament, the governing party’s representation dropped to 137 seats in Parliament.
Results declared by the Electoral Commission show that the NDC matched the NPP by also winning 137 seats in Parliament, the highest ever proportion of seats held by an opposition party in Ghana’s Fourth Republic.
The two parties were joined by an independent candidate, Andrew Amoako Asiamah, who won the Fomena seat.
Both parties have chosen persons they believe could serve as Speaker of Parliament.
Whereas the New Patriotic Party has selected current Speaker of Parliament, Prof. Aaron Mike Oquaye for the speakership role in the next Parliament, the National Democratic Congress, on the other hand, has tipped long-term serving MP, Alban Bagbin for the position.
The post Ex-Deputy Speaker, Ken Dzirasah advocates for consensus building in 8th Parliament appeared first on Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana.
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