The Functional Executive Committee of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has settled on long-time legislator, Alban S.K. Bagbin to vie for the Speaker of Parliament position in Ghana’s yet-to-be inaugurated 8th Parliament.
This was announced in a statement issued on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, and signed by the General Secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia.
Mr. Bagbin is the Second Deputy Speaker of the yet-to-be dissolved 7th Parliament.
Alban Bagbin will contest for the position together with Prof. Aaron Mike Oquaye who served as the Speaker of the 7th Parliament.
The NDC also maintained Haruna Iddrisu and James Klutse Avedzi as the Leader and Deputy Leader of the opposition party in Parliament respectively.
Muntaka Mubarak was named as the Chief Whip while the First Deputy Whip and Second Deputy Whip slots were earmarked for Ahmed Ibrahim and Comfort Doyoe Ghansah respectively.
Although Ghana was left with a hung Parliament after the 2020 polls, the NDC in its statement signed by Asiedu Nketia said “there will be a revision of the leadership of the party in Parliament in order to reflect the exigencies of the 8th Parliament” after the Supreme Court rules on their Election Petition later in the year.
The NDC would be able to present only 136 members in Parliament during the inauguration ceremony, given that a Cape Coast High Court has granted an injunction restraining the Member of Parliament-elect for Assin North, Richard Quayson, from being sworn-in into the 8th Parliament.
The injunction was granted in a case filed by one Michael Ankomah-Nimfa of Assin Bereku who claims Mr. Quayson holds dual citizenship of Ghana and Canada.
Below is the full statement from the NDC:
