Private Legal Practitioner, Samson Anyenini, has condemned the conduct of Members of Parliament (MPs) during the plenary hearing on the e-levy on Monday.
Speaking on the Super Morning Show on Tuesday, December 21, 2021, he said the fight among the MPs on both sides of the House is a big embarrassment to the country.
“Clearly, this Parliament has lost it from the start. At the very beginning, how they got constituted, by way of setting up the Speaker or electing the Speaker and constituting the various Committees of Parliament, it was very clear that the sort of physical display which has been allowed is very embarrassing,” he said.
“The MPs are supposed to represent us but clearly they are not. It has been known for a very long time that our democracy has been sold to parochial partisanship, where you can’t have a single member disagree with their group and this clearly, is a big joke and a fraud on the voters,” he said.
Another concern he raised was with the events leading to the scuffle that ensued in the House, regarding the Deputy Speaker’s decision to count himself to fulfil the precondition for a quorum and vote. According to him, such thinking “is very problematic.”
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“I think the bigger question has to do with the lack of candour and integrity in interpreting the Constitution and standing orders of Parliament.
“It’s terrible to think that a person should be allowed to count themselves to form a quorum and must have the privilege to also count himself to cast a vote,” he stated.
Mr Anyenini also opined that Ghanaians have lost faith in the ability of MPs to fight for their (Ghanaians) best interest.