Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Bagbin, has issued a stern warning to the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, emphasizing the need for collaboration with the Minority side to prevent legislative standstills.
Expressing dismay over the Majority Leader’s failure to ensure the presence of his members during the ongoing 2024 budget debate, Mr Bagbin characterized the Majority Leader’s performance as “limping.”
The Speaker attributed the Majority’s lacklustre performance to the shifting allegiances within the New Patriotic Party (NPP) following the party’s presidential primaries.
He observed that with Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia now the NPP’s flagbearer, loyalties are shifting away from the incumbent, President Nana Akufo-Addo.
Mr. Bagbin argued that this shift in allegiances has led NPP MPs to neglect their responsibilities and treat President Akufo-Addo as a “lame duck” president.
To address this issue, the Speaker implored the Majority Leader to prioritize cooperation with the Minority side, emphasizing that without this collaboration, the legislative process will suffer.
“I expect the majority who have a limping majority leader, limping because when you look at his back you’re less than those in front of you. You have a lame duck president, a lame duck because you have elected a flagbearer and loyalty and commitment are shifting. So your president is now lame duck president
“You need this side of the house to support you to finish your eight years,” Mr. Bagbin stated. “And so if you don’t behave well we have difficulty in proceeding as a nation…please, I expect you to cooperate; I will not allow them to bully you. You’ll get sufficient time to put across your case.”
