By Elsie Appiah-Osei
Accra, June 14, GNA- Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has filed a motion to vacate the ruling of First Deputy Speaker Bernard Ahiafor, which sustained a preliminary objection to a private member’s motion.
The motion numbered 16 was seeking parliamentary consideration of the Chief of Staff’s directive concerning mass revocation of public sector appointments.
According to Mr. Afenyo-Markin, the ruling “fundamentally misconceives the nature and application of the sub judice rule, erroneously subordinates Parliament’s constitutional mandate to the mere existence of related litigation and establishes a dangerous precedent that threatens the very foundations of parliamentary democracy in Ghana.”
He made the application on the said on the Floor of Parliament in Accra, on Friday, June 13, 2025.
Mr. Afenyo-Markin cited the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Vincent Ekow Assafuah versus Attorney General, which allegedly held that a constitutional body could not be restrained from performing its mandate by the mere filing of an action.
He emphasised that only an express court injunction, supported by cogent evidence of irreparable harm, could halt the constitutional functions of a state institution.
“Mr. Speaker, the mere pendency of the action cannot, therefore, justify parliamentary inaction,” the Minority Leader argued.
“Mr. Speaker, Parliament’s deliberative function cannot be suspended simply because a citizen has chosen to file a lawsuit touching upon a similar subject matter,” he added.
Mr. Afenyo-Markin also highlighted the potential dangers of the ruling, stating that it “creates a perverse incentive structure whereby any individual could effectively silence Parliament by filing a lawsuit touching upon matters of public debate.”
The Minority Leader therefore urged the Speaker to exercise the revisionary jurisdiction conferred by Order 127 of the Standing Orders of the House to set aside the ruling and restore Motion No. 16 to the parliamentary agenda for debate.
“Mr. Speaker, such action would reaffirm Parliament’s constitutional independence, protect the integrity of democratic accountability, and ensure that urgent matters of national importance receive the attention they deserve,” the Minority Leader said.
GNA
Edited by Benjamin Mensah