Hon Members, before I
move to the adoption of the Report, it is
important for me to add a word on the issue
that has been raised in connection with the
Public Accounts Committee's (PAC) recommendations. This issue cropped up
Business of the House
when I was the Chairman of PAC, and that
was what urged Parliament to pass a law to
establish the PAC Recommendations,
Implementation Committees at every
Ministry, Department and Agency (MDA),
so that after the recommendations are
adopted by the House, those committees
were empowered to take them on and see to
the implementation or rectification of
whatever errors or gaps that were identified.
I think those committees are functioning.
In fact, when I was the Chairman, I used
to request the list of membership of the
committees from each MDA annually and
they used to submit them. If you really
followed up throughout, they have been
submitting their reports to the Committee.
Parliament has succeeded in using the
Auditor-General's Department in retrieving a lot of the funds that are usually found to
have either been embezzled, mismanaged or
whatever.
There have been some prosecutions in
this matter. Maybe, we would need to get
the PAC to regularly brief the House on the
progress made so far. If we are not satisfied
with the performances of those committees,
and we think that after the consideration of
any report, there is the need for us to
establish a committee to follow up on some
issues, we could then proceed to do so.
However, we thought that it was not
necessary to be establishing committees
after the debate of any of the reports; we
decided to establish permanent Committees
at that level because of the
implementational challenges.
Therefore, I would direct that the PAC
should follow-up on this concern and
submit to the House a report on the
performance of those implementation
Committees for us to discuss and see
whether they are effective. If they are not,
and we want to improve upon it, and
establish a permanent committee in the
House chaired by any Jurist or whatever, we
could then proceed to do so. However, it is
a concern of not only Hon Members, but the
entire country. It is something that we have
to take seriously. I do not see the Chairman
of the PAC; I have information that he is on
a national assignment out of the country, but
I am sure that some Hon Members of the
Committee are available, and they should
draw his attention.
I believe that within a month, we should
get the Report before we go on recess. I am
sure the Vice Chairman listened to me. So,
we will proceed on that issue accordingly
and see how best we could improve upon
the current situation.
I have not also seen anything from the
Electoral Commission (EC), and I have not
been given any brief by the EC on any
proposed Instrument coming from them. I
raised this issue some time ago; I am yet to
receive them and to be briefed on it. Until
that is done, they should forget about laying
such Instrument in the House.
I think, there has been a misinterpretation
and a misunderstanding of the concept of
independence of the various State institutions
or arms of Government that are stated by the
1992 Constitution to be independent. The
independence is in the performance of their
functions. When the matter comes before
Parliament, that is the performance of our
function and not their function.
They cannot say that they are not subject
to the control of anybody, including the
institution of Parliament. For that time, that
is our function which we are going to
perform, and we are not subject to the
Business of the House
control of any arm of Government or
institution of State.
So, please, the Electoral Commission
(EC), the Bank of Ghana (BoG), including
the Judiciary, should take note that their
independence does not mean that
independence has ousted Parliament from
performing its functions; so, if the
Constitutional Instrument (C.I.) is to come
to the House, the proper thing must be done.
Both procedural and substantive laws must
be followed.
I would not allow any such Instrument to
be laid in this House until I am briefed, and
I think that it is the proper thing to do
together with the House to make sure that
the right thing is done in accordance with
the provisions of the Constitution. Anybody
who is not satisfied is permitted to proceed
to the Supreme Court on this matter. [Hear!
So, please, it is in their own interest to
proceed to have the pre-laying meetings,
not only with the Committee, but with the
Leadership of the House before anything
can be submitted and be captured by our
Order Paper. That, I believe, is sufficient
notice to all.
Hon Members, on the issue of the
Parliamentary Friendship Associations, I
am really down-spirited that it has taken
such a long time for the House to get to
know the membership of these Friendship
Associations and to write to our various
Associations and Parliaments for the full
compliments of these associations.
On daily basis, I receive requests from
various Parliaments and Associations
asking for the list of our Hon Members, and
I have always minuted them to the Clerk to
Parliament. It is recently that I have been
briefed that they have to be inaugurated, and
they have not been inaugurated; so, I have
directed that they get a date for us to do the
inauguration. These are urgent matters.
Anywhere we would go, if we are having
bilateral meetings, these things are usually
raised. The Management committee should
take due notice of this and act urgently on
this matter.
For the issue of the District Assemblies' Common Fund (DACF), I am sure the
information would have been sent to the
administrator, and as the acting chair has
stated, due notice has been taken and action
would be taken accordingly.
Mr Alexander Afenyo-Markin — rose
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