Leading member of the New Patriotic Party, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, has asked members of Ghana’s Parliament to be guided by maturity and avoid anarchy when the House resumes on Tuesday for business.
According to the private legal practitioner, who is also a cousin of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, leaders from the two caucuses in the House must meet to agree on pertinent issues before Tuesday’s meeting.
“Parliament must, by all means, avoid a situation of seeming chaos and anarchy on Tuesday. I suggest the two leaders and the Speaker meet before then to agree or agree to disagree on the next steps.
Not long to Dec 7, let maturity be our guide and guard,” he wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday, October 20, 2024.
Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko’s advice comes in the wake of Speaker Alban Bagbin’s declaration of four parliamentary seats as vacant and the subsequent Supreme Court ruling that temporarily overturned the Speaker’s decision.
On Thursday, October 17, 2024, Speaker Bagbin invoked Article 97(g) and (h) of the 1992 Constitution to declare the seats vacant, citing the 2020 precedent involving Fomena MP, Andrew Amoako Asiamah.
However, on Friday, October 18, 2024, the Supreme Court issued a stay of execution on Bagbin’s ruling.
The Court directed Parliament to allow the affected MPs—Cynthia Morrison (Agona West), Kwadjo Asante (Suhum), Peter Kwakye Ackah (Amenfi Central), and Andrew Asiamah (Fomena)—to continue representing their constituencies and performing their duties until a final verdict is delivered.
The Supreme Court’s directive will remain in effect beyond the 10 days initially requested, lasting until the Court delivers its final judgement on the matter.
The application to stay the Speaker’s decision was filed by Members of Parliament from the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who sought the Court’s intervention to prevent the ruling from affecting three of their members and one from the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Despite the Supreme Court’s ruling, the NDC caucus has asserted that, based on the Speaker’s declaration, they are now the Majority in Parliament and intend to assert their rights when the House reconvenes on Tuesday.