Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has said the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin’s reaction to President Akufo-Addo’s failure to assent to some private members bill is unfortunate.
The Suame Member of Parliament (MP) has said the comment is unfortunate and unwarranted.
This is in connection with a letter to Parliament on Monday in which President Akufo-Addo explained his decision to decline assenting to the Criminal Offences Amendment Bill and the Ghana Armed Forces Amendment Bills sponsored by the Member of Parliament for Madina, Francis Xavier Sosu.
The President said his decision was based on the potential financial impact on the state’s consolidated fund and a violation of Article 108 of the constitution.
But Speaker Bagbin in response, said the President was tragically wrong and was ill-advised by the Attorney General, Godfred Yeboah Dame.
However, the Majority Leader, who was clearly not happy with the comments took the Speaker on.
“If the Speaker disagrees with him, it is legitimate, and he could have ended at that. I disagree with the opinion of the president. Then maybe I also come up with my understanding of the law. But we all saw and heard the rather visceral language of the Speaker.
I thought it was most unfortunate. The Speaker, after reading it, goes on his own frolic and attacks the president, and I felt it was most unfortunate,” he said on the floor of Parliament.
Also known as the Witchcraft Bill, it explicitly criminalises the practice of witchcraft accusation and proscribes the declaration, accusation, naming or labelling of another person as a witch, and its related matters.
But the President has said even though the content of the bill has his support, he cannot assent to them because of constitutional issues.
He noted that, the way and manner the bill was prepared flouts Article 108 of the 1992 Ghana Constitution.
President Akufo-Addo said the concerns have profound implications for the constitutional integrity of “this Legislative action.”
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