National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament say they will occupy the Majority side of the House when it resumes sitting on Thursday, November 7.
According to Adaklu legislator Kwame Governs Agbodza, his side will abide by the Speaker’s ruling, which vacated the seats of four MPs who are running for re-election on tickets different from the parties that initially brought them to Parliament.
“We will be attending upon the House as directed by the Speaker. We shall be taking our seats in the chamber in accordance with the Majority side which we are in Parliament,” he said.
He added that the NDC MPs are willing to cooperate with the NPP side to conduct government business.
This comes weeks after both parties took up seats on the majority side of the House, leaving the minority side completely vacant on October 22.
This unusual arrangement was due to an ongoing confusion over which party holds the majority, following Speaker Alban Bagbin’s declaration of four vacant parliamentary seats on October 17.
The development came after the declaration by Speaker Bagbin that four parliamentary seats—three held by the NPP and one by the NDC—were vacant, shifting the balance of power in Parliament.
With the NDC claiming 136 seats and the NPP reduced to 135, the NDC quickly asserted itself as the new majority.
However, on Friday, October 18, the Supreme Court issued a stay of execution on Speaker Bagbin’s decision, ruling that the four MPs must be allowed to continue representing their constituencies until the court reaches a final decision.
Despite the court’s ruling, the NDC caucus has refused to relinquish its newly claimed majority status.
Speaking at today’s conference, Mr Agbodza added that “our advice is our minority NPP is to try and prioritise business that is in the interest of the people of this country, and they shall find favor and cooperation with us in trying to deal with those businesses.”
“We can assure them that as long as the business is in the interest of improving the lives of Ghanaians, they can count on the majority NDC caucus in Parliament to support those initiatives to pass those things that will help the people of this country.”
Meanwhile, the Speaker, Alban Bagbin has accused the Judiciary and Executive of undermining the authority of Parliament.
The Speaker raised serious concerns over what he described as interference and a growing power struggle between the arms of government, accusing
According to him, the judiciary and executive’s recent actions directly challenge the jurisdiction and powers of Parliament, which he called the “repository of the sovereign will of the people of Ghana.”
