A former ranking member on the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee in Parliament, Inusah Fuseini, has cast doubt on the impact of the report to be presented by the committee set up over matters of vote of censure against Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
An eight-member committee was set up on Thursday by the Speaker of Parliament after the Minority caucus moved the motion against the Finance Minister.
The committee is expected to present its report in one week.
Inusah Fuseini, a former Tamale Central MP, is however of the view that if the Finance Minister had waived the right to legal representation, the matter could have been concluded immediately.
“If the Minister after being given an opportunity had said that, the matters are grave and want to be represented by a counsel, then the need for a committee would have arisen. My view is that, this matter ought to end expeditiously and now that, it has been referred to a committee, we are going to relive what we saw in Parliament because the committee will come out with a report with the recommendations not being unanimous. So we will come back to the same position”, he said on Eyewitness News.
Inusah Fuseini also called on the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, to be more tolerant of the MPs.
His comments follow the exchange between the Speaker and MP for Asawase, Muntaka Mubarak.
“I think that what happened was unfortunate. The Speaker should be more tolerant of divergent views to bring order in Parliament. Nothing prevents a member from disagreeing with the Speaker’s ruling on the floor of the house, except that the Speaker will remind that member that there is a rule of procedure in challenging decisions of a Speaker.”
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, on Thursday ruled that an ad-hoc committee be set up to probe the allegations for the motion of censure raised by the Minority Caucus against the embattled Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta.
According to the Speaker, setting up a committee will provide an opportunity for the Finance Minister to respond to the seven allegations including conflict of interest raised against him by the Minority Caucus.
“The evidence will be placed before the committee. The Minister will have the opportunity to defend himself. A report will be presented to the House, and we will debate that report,” the Speaker of Parliament said.
NDC Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga East, Dominic Ayine and NPP MP for Adansi-Asokwa, KT Hammond will co-chair the committee.
