Debates of 3 Mar 2015

MR FIRST DEPUTY SPEAKER
PRAYERS 10:50 a.m.
VOTES AND PROCEEDINGS AND THE OFFICIAL REPORT 10:50 a.m.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Hon Members, Correction of the Votes and Proceedings dated Friday, 27th February,
2015.
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Hon Member, are you up?
Mr J. K. Gidisu 10:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, sorry to take you back to page 8.
Item number 50, under absent, we have “Gidisu, Joe Kwashie”. I was present in the House on Friday.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Very well.
Table Office, please, take note.
Yes, Hon Quashigah?
Mr Richard M. Quashigah 10:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I am a member of the Public Accounts Committee, and the Chairman, according to the information I had, sought permission on behalf of all Hon Members on Friday. So, we were out in Koforidua

on parliamentary business. Therefore, I would have imagined that I would be marked “absent with permission.” But Mr Speaker, that is not the case.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Very well.

Hon Members, the Votes and Proceedings of Friday, for 27th February 2015, are hereby adopted as the true record of proceedings for that day.
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Yes, Hon Member for Sekondi?
Papa Owusu- Ankomah 10:50 a.m.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
Late last Friday, it came to the attention of the people of this country that the Supreme Court ordered the Electoral Commission to suspend the District Assembly Elections it intended to hold today.
Mr Speaker, this decision of the Supreme Court, raises so many issues, which I believe, should be of concern to the people of this country, particularly this House -- representing the people of this country, in whom sovereignty resides.
I am therefore, bringing to the attention of this House, particularly the Leadership -- if it would not be in the interest of this country to invite the Electoral Commission to come and brief this House on the circumstances leading to the process towards holding these elections, and in the light of the Supreme Court decision, the way forward -- to calm the anxiety of the people of this country, in respect of the District Assembly Elections.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Very well.
Hon Member for Sekondi, I will plead with you to hold on a little. This is because we have two Official Reports for consideration. I believe after that, we can take this matter up.
Papa Owusu- Ankomah 10:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I am sorry.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Very well.
Hon Members, we have the Official Report for Wednesday, 25th February, 2015 for correction.
Any corrections?
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Yes, Hon Member?
Dr S. Nana Ato Arthur 10:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, at column 1153 of the Wednesday, 25th February, 2015 issue, the name; “Dr Nana A. S. Arthur” should not be the initials of my name.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Hon Member, can you give us the correct rendition?
Dr Nana Arthur 10:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, the correct rendition should be “Dr S. Nana Ato Arthur”. It is not connotative.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Very well.
Table Office, please, take note.
Hon Members, the Official Report for 25th February 2015, as corrected, is hereby adopted as the true reflection of the proceedings for that day.
  • [No correction was made to the Official Report of Thursday, 26th February 2015.]
    • Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
    Hon Members, we now come to what the Hon Member for Sekondi put forward.
    rose
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 10:50 a.m.
    Yes, Hon Minority Leader?
    Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11 a.m.
    Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
    Mr Speaker, I believe the issue raised by the Hon Member for Sekondi is very relevant.
    We all do know that the issues that occasioned the ruling by the Supreme Court were raised in this House. But for whatever reason, nobody paid heed to it.
    I remember the very day when the Instrument was maturing, these matters were canvassed on the floor of the House, and we thought that the proper thing could have been done.
    Now, as the Hon Member has indicated, the non holding of the elections today, would certainly have serious repercussions on the functioning of the Distr ict Assemblies and it is important that we have clarity on the way forward.
    Four years ago, we went through a similar tunnel and Mr Speaker, it occasioned the dissolution of the District Assemblies and the instructions to the Chief Executives and the Co-ordinating Directors were to hold the fort before new Assemblies came in place.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11 a.m.
    Hon Minority Leader, I believe we can do without that.
    Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11 a.m.
    Thank you.
    Mr Joseph Y. Chireh 11 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I think the statement and the request made by the Hon Member for Sekondi is appropriate. I also know that the EC is seeking audience with this House for us to have the full judgment of the Supreme Court and the implications. Until we get that judgment and see what the Supreme Court has said, I think we should hold our horses. This is because where the Minority Leader was going, he had passed Suame and was heading towards the University of Science and Technology (Tech) junction, which is not right.
    I believe as early as possible, as he said, we should have a meeting with the EC, study the judgment of the Supreme Court and from there, we will see the way forward.
    The statement that they were making about 28th and also about bringing an Instrument, until we get what the Supreme Court is saying and until they tell us how they also understand what interpretation they have given to that ruling, it would be premature to be talking about what we should do.
    So, I believe that as he r ightly suggested, as early as possible, we should engage the EC, particularly the Leadership for the meantime, before we can have them meet the whole House.
    Thank you, Mr Speaker.
    Mr Alfred K. Agbesi 11 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I cannot agree more with Hon Papa Owusu- Ankomah, Member for Sekondi, who made the request and ably supported by the Hon Minority Leader.
    Mr Speaker, the whole country is waiting to know what actually is going to happen after the Supreme Court decision -- the way forward for the aspirants -- for people who have expressed interest in this election are unknown and so, the request that the EC should appear and brief the House is in order.
    It is also true that not many of us have the judgment of the Supreme Court. So, it is therefore, necessary that all efforts must be made to procure the judgment to see the direction of the Supreme Court. We would ask that the Clerk's office should make it possible for us to get copies of the judgment and we would then be in the mood to know what actually we will be putting before the EC when they appear.
    Mr Speaker, it is being said that the EC may or want to appear before the House on the 16th of this month. Mr Speaker, I would say that is not acceptable at all. In view of the people's fate undecided now, as early as possible, the Commission must come and brief us.
    I agree with the Hon Minority Leader that the Business Committee, which incidentally, will meet tomorrow, must programme them, if possible, for the next day, which is Thursday, for them to appear and tell us the way forward.
    We cannot continue as a nation, to be having this kind of experience. So, it is necessary that they are brought here and I agree that Thursday should be the day the Business Committee must programme them to appear and we want this to be on record. Today, we should have been in the constituencies trying to vote but we are here. [Interruption.] Yes, we are here doing national duty; the one that has been suspended is also a national duty. So, if we see the judgment of the Supreme Court, whether it is the fault of the EC or any
    other person, then we would be in the position to know what to do.
    Mr Speaker, the EC needs to appear before us.
    Thank you.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11 a.m.
    Thank you very much.
    Hon Isaac Osei and then Hon K. T. Hammond, in that order.
    Mr Isaac Osei 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I also agree with what the Hon Member for Sekondi said.
    I would want to take off from a point which the Hon Minority Leader made. In connection with that particular point, we all understand that, most of these District Assemblies would be prorogued on 15th March, 2015.
    If that is so and they will reassemble around May, given what we think, then I believe the Hon Minister for Local Government and Rural Development should also be made to appear before this House to tell us the arrangements that will be made in the interim, especially concerning investment as well as capital expenditure. This is because, that is the area we had problems four years ago -- so that the District Chief Executives (DCEs), Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) would know exactly what they can do in the absence of a substantive Assembly. It is important that we bring the Hon Minister for Local Government and Rural Development also here to explain to us how we will do this.
    Mr Kobina T. Hammond 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I am afraid I do not agree with the suggestions that the Electoral Commissioner should be invited to this House.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    Order! Order!
    Mr Hammond 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, on this matter, the other day, my Hon Colleague, Member for Effutu, Hon Alexander Afenyo-Markin, raised the matter, ably supported by myself. Were they not listening? We ventilated the issue. We told him that what he was doing was wrong constitutionally and legally and he could not do it.
    Mr Speaker, to some extent, I also heap some of the blame at the door of the Supreme Court. The Electoral Commissioner has been made to feel that, he could do whatever he wanted to do. Come to think about the t ime we star ted with the general elections --
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    Hon Member, I do not think that it is right for you to be castigating the Supreme Court in this Chamber. I will ask you to withdraw that portion of your statement.
    Mr Hammond 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I will explain why I said that and if you still --
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    Please, withdraw that portion from your statement.
    Mr Hammond 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, if I do not explain, you might not understand the basis for that.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    Please, withdraw that portion of your submission.
    Mr Hammond 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I will defer to you in a moment.
    My argument is that, if you do not appreciate the basis for the suggestion I made, you will not in all seriousness, appreciate the point I made. So, if you ask me to withdraw it and I withdraw it, I would not have translated to you the essence of the point I am making.

    The Supreme Court accepts that when they make a decision and the public thinks it is wrong, we have the right to criticise them. We cannot take them individually, but if you have difficulties with a judgement of the Supreme Court, you have the right to say so --
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    But blaming the Supreme Court for what has happened, is where I cannot --
    Mr Hammond 11:10 a.m.
    That is why Mr Speaker, I said you should allow me to develop a point. I was dovetailing into the point I just -- [Interruption.] Shut up! You do not understand the law. You do not understand the principles.
    The Electoral Commissioner has been misbehaving in this country and you think it has been inuring to your benefit, so, you have been encouraging him to do so. Now, he has been hoisted by his own petard and you ask that we bring him to the House, to do what?
    If you still want me to withdraw the reference to the Supreme Court, Mr Speaker, I am quite happy to do so.
    The Electoral Commissioner is wrong. We do not need him here. He has got special advisers, legal advisers, then he sits in there, advises himself and expect --
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    Hon Member, please, withdraw that portion of your statement.
    Mr Hammond 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I deferred to you. I withdraw that one.
    But it is time that the Electoral Commissioner sat up, rolled up his socks and come to his conscience and know that there are human beings in this country who look up to him to get his act right. So far, he is not doing that.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    Thank you very much, Hon Member.
    Dr Matthew O. Prempeh 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, what has happened is one of the lowest points in District Assembly governance in this country. Mr Speaker, never did any of us think that it will come to the point that has arisen. Certain things have arisen out of Friday's ruling.
    I hope, in making pronouncements today, you would add the Hon Minister for Finance to the Hon Minister for Local Government and Rural Development and the Electoral Commissioner appearing, among the Leadership of the House and any other committee you will recommend.
    Mr Speaker, it is not just because of what the Hon Member for Subin said, that the various Assemblies are being prorogued around 15th March, 2015. It is not only that. The Hon Minister for Local Government and Rural Development should give us what is going to happen.
    Even if it means the President extending the mandate of the Assemblies as per the Constitution, Mr Speaker, we should look at it. This is a high level crisis in local government we are witnessing.
    Mr Speaker, I will plead that not only the EC is drawn to this House on a specific day. The Minister for Finance should be here to provide funds, if necessary -- with the Committee of Finance immediately. Not only that, the Hon Minister for Local Government and Rural Development --
    Mr Speaker, please, if we do not want a crisis to develop out of this Supreme Court ruling -- We are walking toward a crisis, because, this is a foreseen situation that has arisen. I plead that no matter your pronouncement, bring all these Ministers who are relevant round one table, together with Leadership and any other committee you will recommend, so that for
    once, not only the Local Government and Rural Development Minister outlining what we are going to be told. The Finance Minister, if he has to dip his hand in the Contingency Fund and any other resolutions out of that, so that the country will return to normal as soon as possible.
    Mr Alexander K. Afenyo-Markin 11:10 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I am grateful for the opportunity.
    Mr Speaker, I would want to bring to the attention of this House, that apart from the C.I. 85 which became an issue, per the writ, we had argued that, until same was passed, the EC did not have such powers to open nominations.
    Another important matter arose which is also constitutional. Mr Speaker, in the Constitution, as part of the mandate of the EC, every election must be governed by a Regulation. If you see the 2012 Elections, we have the C.I. 75, which spelt out how nominations were to be picked, how they should be submitted, where a person has concerns and all that.
    In this particular instance, the EC has not brought a Regulation to this House to even govern the District Assembly Elections. I heard on air this morning that, having studied the judgement, they intend to bring a C.I. specifically for the elections. I would like to urge that they expedite action in bringing same.
    On another important point, Mr Speaker, I, in a way disagree with the suggestion by another Hon Member on our side that because the Electoral Commissioner does not listen to advice, he must not necessarily come before us.
    Mr Speaker, my view is that, we are the people's representatives. Although they have not been listening, today, they have
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:10 a.m.
    Hon Members, I believe I have got the sense of the House. If you will permit me to give some directions.
    First of all, I direct that the Office of the Clerk applies immediately for a copy of the decision of the Supreme Court today.
    The second thing is, the EC, together with the Hon Minister for Local Government and Rural Development as well as the Hon Minister for Finance be programmed by the Business Committee to appear before this House. This is because of the urgency of this matter -- to appear in this House on Thursday to give us some insight into this problem which has arisen, so that we will be able to forge a way forward.
    Thank you very much, Hon Members, for your contributions.
    Hon Deputy Majority Leader, presentation of Papers?
    rose
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    Yes, Hon Member, are you up?
    Mr Adagbila 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I would want to draw your attention to a very serious national security problem. The Ghana Police Service has ten regional police committees and we have a Police Council. From last year, 2014 to date, there have been a mass fraudulent recruitment of police recruits and people are being defrauded, each paying GH¢5,000.00 to GH¢6,000.00 and there have been a number of about five hundred people involved. So, you can imagine the amount of fraudulent money they make.
    The whole country is silent; the Ministry of the Interior is silent; the Regional Police Commanders are silent until 24 hours ago. People have been moved to report at the various training centres. They arrived and the people in the training centres were like, who is bringing you here?
    So Mr Speaker, I would want this House to cause an investigation into these deals going on because we are at risk. If the Ghana Police Service can sit down for about half a year and all these things are carried on quietly, it is very serious.
    I am done Mr Speaker.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    Very well. Thank you very much.
    I am aware of the fact that the Committees of this House for Defence and the Interior have taken the matter up and today, they are going to meet the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and a few other people. So, I believe we leave it in their capable hands and then see what happens by way of a report that they would bring to this House.
    Mr Adagbila 11:20 a.m.
    Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
    Mr Agbesi 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, item 4 --
    Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, you have just drawn my attention to a development that the Committee on Defence and the Interior is taking the issue that has been raised by my Hon Colleague up. I do not know what occasioned it. Was there a referral in the House to the Committee?
    This is because we have always assumed that if matters are not referred to committees in plenary, committees suo moto may not be able to delve into matters and if they do, the reports do not come to plenary.
    Given the importance of the issue that has been raised by my Hon Colleague, I would want to know whether a proper referral has been made to the Committee on the floor, so that at the end of it, their own inquiry into this matter, whatever report, does not get subsumed into any other business but that it may have to be well positioned in the House for the consideration of the House.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    I am not aware of any formal referral to that Committee. It is just that they having seen the story in the newspapers and decided that it is within their ambit to investigate. We could formalise it as we sit here for the matter to be formally referred to the Committee on Defence and the Interior to investigate the matter and submit a report to plenary.
    Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I would want to believe that you are giving such a directive?
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    That is the directive I have given.
    I so direct that the Committee deal with the matter, and submit a report to this House for consideration.
    Yes, Hon Deputy Minority Leader?
    Mr Agbesi 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, my attention has been drawn to the fact that, item 4 (a), (b) and (c) are not ready, so, we will proceed with item 5. [Pause.]
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    Very well.
    Hon Members, item numbered 5 -- presentation and First Reading of Bills.

    Yes, Hon Deputy Majority Leader?
    Mr Agbesi 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, is your direction on item 5, that it should not be taken today?
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    I would have thought so but it should come from you.
    Mr Agbesi 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, in the circumstances --
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    Yes, Hon Minority Leader?
    Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I took a cue from what you stated earlier. But I have the impression that in between, sufficient numbers of Members have trooped in, such that you may afford space to the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, who is here to engage in the business of item number 5 on page 2 of the Order Paper. Just that and perhaps, we could adjourn thereafter.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    Very well.
    Hon Members, item number 5 -- Presentation of First Reading of Bills, Whistleblower (Amendment) Bill, 2015.
    BILLS -- FIRST READING 11:20 a.m.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    Yes, Hon Deputy Majority Leader?
    Mr Alfred K. Agbesi 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I beg to move, that this House do adjourn to tomorrow, Wednesday, 4th of March, 2015 at 10.00 o'clock in the forenoon.
    Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:20 a.m.
    Mr Speaker, I noticed that the Deputy Majority Leader is in a hurry to get us out of the Chamber.
    I will second the Motion, but before that, I would want to use the occasion to announce that, following the intervention made by the Minority Leader on the day that the President presented the State of the Nation Address, tomorrow, March 4, the Minority will present what in our candid assessment, represents the true State of the Nation Address.
    Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:20 a.m.
    Order!
    Hon Members, the Motion has been moved and seconded, that this House adjourns till tomorrow at 10.00 o'clock in the forenoon. I will put the Question.
    Question put and Motion agreed to.
    ADJOURNMENT 11:20 a.m.
  • The House was accordingly adjourned at 11:32 a.m. till Wednesday, 4th March, 2015 at 10.00 a.m.