Parliament of Ghana
By Kekeli K. Blamey
Accra, July 18, 2024 — Mr. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, the Speaker of Parliament, on Tuesday categorically debunked media reports suggesting that a bill concerning the use of sirens by Members of Parliament (MPs) had been laid before the House.
Addressing the issue at a Town Hall Meeting Public Lecture on Private Member’s Bills at the University of Ghana, Legon, Speaker Bagbin clarified, “Starting from yesterday, I heard some news that there is a bill in Parliament trying to give Members of Parliament (MPs) sirens and also no speed limits. I mean, this social media thing. There is nothing like that before Parliament.”
The event was organized by Parliamentary Network Africa (PN Africa) in collaboration with the Students’ Parliament of the University of Ghana.
The Speaker expressed his surprise upon hearing the news and confirmed that he had made inquiries with his directors, who assured him that no such bill existed. “I have the responsibility of admitting many of these bills. Sometimes they may elude me, but I haven’t seen such a bill,” he remarked.
He further elucidated that the confusion might have stemmed from a misunderstanding about Parliament’s role in amending legislation. “We don’t amend Legislations. We don’t have the power of the Constitution to amend Legislation or Instruments. I just told the people that no, no, as for that one, it can’t be true; because Parliament cannot amend Legislations.”
Speaker Bagbin emphasized that the Constitution delegates the power to amend legislation to other bodies. When such constitutional bodies bring an instrument before Parliament, whether a Legislative Instrument (LI) or a Constitutional Instrument (CI), MPs can either accept or reject it in its entirety, but they cannot amend individual provisions.
He reiterated the stringent requirements set by the framers of the 1992 Constitution, which mandate a two-thirds majority vote to reject legislation. In a bipartisan Parliament like the current one, achieving such a majority is nearly impossible.
Reflecting on his tenure, Speaker Bagbin recalled that the only time Parliament successfully rejected an instrument was in 1994 when he chaired the Parliamentary Subsidiary Legislation Committee. The instrument in question originated from the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
The Town Hall lecture aimed to discuss the Private Member Bills Regime and propose solutions for the future. Attendees included participants from the University of Ghana, Accra Technical University, University of Media Arts and Communication (UniMAC), and Ashesi University.
