The National Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Henry Nana Boakye (Nana B) has said that the NPP minority in Parliament will not allow itself to be bulldozed in the House.
Nana B says that the Minority will insist on following due procedure and consensus building in the House.
He was reacting to the decision of Speaker Alban Bagbin to suspend four Members of Parliament (MPs) for two weeks following a chaotic incident that occurred during the sitting of the Appointments Committee which resulted in the destruction of tables and microphones.
In a Facebook post, on Monday, February 3, he said “Today, the leadership of the New Patriotic Party paid a courtesy visit to Parliament to meet with the MIGHTY MINORITY caucus and commend them on their excellence thus far in conducting parliamentary business.
“In the face of the autocratic posturing of the Speaker, as seen by his recent unilateral suspension of three NPP MPs, we assured the caucus of our continued support and encouraged them to be resilient and unafraid of the NDC majority and the Speaker’s bullying tendencies.
“In response, the caucus promised us that, rain or shine, they will insist on following due procedure and consensus building in the House. Our gallant men and women in the house of Parliament certainly will not be pushovers.”
The General Secretary of the NPP, Justin Kodua Frimpong also in a statement described the Speaker’s action as “selective” and “autocratic”.
“The party sees this selective, and autocratic posture of the Speaker as very dangerous, with all these actions packaged to cow the minority into submission, consequently weakening its potential to hold the government accountable,” the statement read.
The party reiterated its unflinching support for its MPs, calling on all Members of Parliament to stand united in the face of “repression and unfairness.”
“The party hereby reiterates its position that it stands with its eighty-eight (88) gallant Hon. Members to address all forms of repression and unfairness in the application of the rules governing Parliament and the nation,” the statement concluded.
Laud Nartey is an online editor with current affair team at Media General, operators of TV3 Ghana, 3News.com and more. Email: Laud.Nartey@editors.3news.com
