![\"Speaker](\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/adjoa_sarfo.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\nSpeaker to rule on Adwoa Safo, 2 other MPs today <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, will today determine the fate of three New Patriotic Party (NPP) Members of Parliament (MPs) who absented themselves for more than 15 sittings during the first meeting of the second session.<\/h2>\n
They are the MP for Dome-Kwabenya, Sarah Adwoa Safo; the MP for Assin Central, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, and the MP for Ayawaso Central, Henry Quartey.<\/p>\n
The three had been referred by the Speaker to the Privileges Committee to explain the reasons for their absence.<\/p>\n
Gross disrespect<\/strong><\/p>\n Delivering his address on the floor of Parliament Tuesday to welcome MPs from recess, Mr Bagbin said the House, in consonance with the Standing Orders of Parliament, referred the three absentee MPs to the Privileges Committee to explain why they absented themselves for the 15 days in alleged violation of Article 97(1) (c) of the Constitution and the Standing Orders of Parliament.<\/p>\n He said article 77 highlighted the importance of representation in Parliament during meetings and frowned on unexcused absence from the House.<\/p>\n He said the article imposed severe penalty for MPs who ran foul of it since MPs represented the nation, the people and the parties and added that the right to representation was fundamental to the proper functioning of democracy.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt is gross disrespect of the nation, constituents, Parliament, parties and the Constitution for an MP to absent himself from Parliament without permission for 15 days out of approximately 48 sittings of a meeting,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Speaker said such absenteeism potentially impeded the work of the House because it deprived it of the\u00a0contributions of the member\u00a0<\/span>and affected the quorum\u00a0<\/span>requirement.<\/span><\/p>\n Ruling must be erudite<\/strong> <\/span><\/p>\n The Majority Leader, Osei\u00a0<\/span>Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, expressed\u00a0<\/span>the hope that the ruling by the\u00a0<\/span>Speaker on the absentee MPs\u00a0<\/span>would be \u201cvery erudite\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI want to believe that the\u00a0<\/span>ruling that will come from you\u00a0<\/span>tomorrow will be in sync with\u00a0<\/span>the Constitution,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n Recall<\/strong><\/p>\n Before the House adjourned\u00a0<\/span>sine die on July 28, 2022, the\u00a0<\/span>Speaker said when the House\u00a0<\/span>reconvened in October, he would\u00a0<\/span>give his ruling on the matter.<\/span><\/p>\n He told the House that he\u00a0<\/span>would deliver a detailed ruling\u00a0<\/span>on a preliminary objection\u00a0<\/span>raised by the Majority Leader on\u00a0<\/span>the matter.<\/span><\/p>\n Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu\u00a0<\/span>raised a preliminary objection\u00a0<\/span>after the Privileges Committee\u00a0<\/span>completed its investigation of\u00a0<\/span>the three MPs. <\/span><\/p>\n The committee, by a majority\u00a0<\/span>decision, recommended that the\u00a0<\/span>Dome-Kwabenya seat should be\u00a0<\/span>declared vacant since Adwoa\u00a0<\/span>Safo absented herself from\u00a0<\/span>Parliament for more than 42<\/span>days without permission from\u00a0<\/span>the Speaker, and also refused to\u00a0<\/span>take advantage of an\u00a0<\/span>opportunity offered to her to\u00a0<\/span>explain<\/span><\/p>\n It, therefore, recommended\u00a0<\/span>that the seat of Ms Safo be\u00a0<\/span>declared vacant but the Minority\u00a0<\/span>opposed the recommendation\u00a0<\/span>on grounds that it was the entire\u00a0<\/span>House that should rather decide\u00a0<\/span>on the way forward.<\/span><\/p>\n Preliminary objection<\/strong><\/p>\n Raising a preliminary issue\u00a0<\/span>with the procedure on the floor\u00a0<\/span>before the House went on recess,\u00a0<\/span>Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu\u00a0<\/span>expressed concern over why a\u00a0<\/span>motion for the House to adopt\u00a0<\/span>the report of the Privileges\u00a0<\/span>Committee on the alleged\u00a0<\/span>breaches of Article 97(1) (c) of the\u00a0<\/span>Constitution and Order 16(1) of\u00a0<\/span>the Standing Orders by three\u00a0<\/span>MPs should found space in the\u00a0<\/span>Order Paper of that day.<\/span><\/p>\n He said once the Privileges\u00a0<\/span>Committee had made a\u00a0<\/span>determination in respect of the\u00a0<\/span>three MPs, the imperatives of\u00a0<\/span>Article 97 would automatically\u00a0<\/span>be triggered.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSo Mr Speaker, my thinking\u00a0<\/span>is that the purpose of a motion\u00a0<\/span>is for the House to make a\u00a0<\/span>determination and I am\u00a0<\/span>thinking that really this is not\u00a0<\/span>for the House.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt is not for the plenary to\u00a0<\/span>make a determination; so Mr\u00a0<\/span>Speaker, even locating it on the\u00a0<\/span>Order Paper is unfortunate and\u00a0<\/span>indeed unnecessary as it should\u00a0<\/span>have not been listed the Order\u00a0<\/span>Paper,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n