We’ll Appear In Parliament Only If Recall Focuses On Covid-19 – Minority

The Minority in Parliament said they will heed to the Speaker’s call to appear in parliament only if proceedings will focus on fight against the covid-19 pandemic,

The Deputy Minority Leader, James Avedzi, who made this known in an interview with Citi FM, said the parliamentary business should centre on pertinent issues to attract legislators.

“If this recall is about the COVID-19 pandemic, we are prepared to meet but not any other business”.

“Once the issue is something that Minority has been calling for all throughout last week, and that is the issue for which the house is being recalled to attend, we the Minority will attend sitting,” he added.

The Speaker, Professor Mike Oquaye recalled MPs to the House for urgent business, three days after he suspended sitting indefinitely.

According to reports, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta, will present a policy statement on government’s measures to contain the novel coronavirus pandemic later on Wednesday.

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Mr Avedzi said, the recall was expected given the monetary commitments the government had made to fight the pandemic.

 “We knew that the Finance Minister could not have spent the money out of the contingency fund without the approval of Parliament so we kept asking him.”

The Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, however, indicated that the recall was done without a consensus.

He said that he had not been able to reach the Minority Leader, Haruna Idrissu, on the matter.

“You can only build consensus with people who avail themselves. I have called the Minority leader several times…his phone is eternally engaged and I believe there must be a purpose to that.”