The Speaker of Ghana’s Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has ruled that the report from the Privileges Committee cannot be automatic to declare Dome-Kwabenya Member of Parliament (MP), Adwoa Safo‘s seat vacant.
His ruling was in relation to Article 93 of the 1992 Constitution.
The Speaker, addressing the House on Wednesday, also averred that the grounds for the call for the MP’s removal were premature.
Mr Bagbin revealed that for an MP to forgo his or her seat, he or she must have fulfilled three ingredients including unpermitted absence, for more than 15 days and inability to give a reasonable excuse.
With this, the Speaker disagreed with Members basing their arguments on only one leg of the three ingredients.
The Speaker indicated that his ruling was also based on petitions submitted to him on the absenteeism of the parliamentarian.
Miss Safo and two other parliamentarians absented themselves for more than 15 sittings during the first meeting of the second session of Parliament.
The two; the MP for Assin Central, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, and the MP for Ayawaso Central, Henry Quartey were therefore referred by the Speaker to the Privileges Committee to explain the reasons for their absence.
In line with the Standing Orders, the three absentee MPs were referred to the Privileges Committee to explain why they absented themselves for 15 days in alleged violation of Article 97(1) (c) of the Constitution and the Standing Orders of Parliament.
The Speaker, has, thus, ruled that the entire House will have to determine the fate of the Dome-Kwabenya MP based on the recommendations of the Privileges Committee.
Audio attached above: