Speaker of Parliament, Kingsford Alban Sumani Bagbin, has said another hung Parliament could help strengthen Ghana’s parliamentary democracy.
Ghana’s 8th Parliament, which for the first time in the country’s history, failed to produce a clear majority on both sides of the divide has come under scrutiny, as the two sides are sometimes unable to reach a consensus on important issues of national interest.
But, speaking at the launch of the Democracy Cup to celebrate 30 years of uninterrupted parliamentary democracy, Speaker Bagbin said this hung parliament is more of a blessing than a curse to Ghana’s democracy.
“We are lucky that God blessed us with a hung parliament and I will encourage you to let us go that way for some time.
“Why? Because that allows you to sit to reason, not to act like a mob because of the majority numbers. There is usually no time to sit and think but just rush … so even when you win the debate, you lose the vote. So indeed, there is a lot to be grateful to the Lord Almighty for,” he noted.
He asserted that, this hung arliament “is a completely new game.”
“..We have now re-positioned ourselves to be able to handle it better. We were applying rules that were for a majoritarian system. Definitely, you have to vote and the majority will carry the day. Now, you are running a parliament where there is no majority so you can’t apply those rules again.”
He stated that given his involvement with all of Ghana’s esteemed presidents, it’s inconceivable for anyone to sideline him and reduce parliament to merely a government agent.
He emphasised that before his tenure as Speaker, Parliament was merely perceived as a segment of public service, adding that “It won’t happen when I am alive.”
