Assembly members of AMA exchange blows over allowances
What was intended to be a programme to elect a Presiding Member (PM) at the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) turned into a ‘boxing arena’ as blows were exchanged over sitting allowances.
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According to some members of the assembly, they had not been paid their allowances for six sittings since the inauguration of the assembly in October this year.
In all, the AMA owes each elected member an estimated amount of GH¢800. Members of the assembly are 126.
How the fight started
After more than three hours of delay for the election, the Assembly Member for Atiko Electoral Area, Mr David Abalo, raised some concerns on the floor of the House.
Among them was the payment of six sitting allowances that were due the members of the assembly, the repair of street lights which was promised by the Chief Executive of the AMA before the end of the year, and the building of the capacity of the members.
Mr Abalo said since members were not paid monthly for their services, there was the need for the assembly to pay them their allowances as and when they were due them.
He, therefore, moved that members were paid their allowances before the election for the presiding member was held.
However, the Assembly Member for Akweteman Electoral Area, Mr Abdul Razak Issah, in a counter-motion, said the concerns raised by Mr Abalo were not part of the agenda for the day and as such it should not be considered for discussion.
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That did not go down well with some members of the assembly who thought the opinion shared by Mr Issah was uncalled for, creating tension among members.
The Chief Executive Officer of the assembly, Mr Alfred Okoe Vanderpujie, in an attempt to calm the situation, threatened to cause the removal of any assembly member who misbehaved during the meeting.
Vote on allowances
That forced the hand of the Metro Coordinating Director, Mr Sam Ayeh- Dartey, who was acting as the PM, to call for a vote on the issue of the allowances.
After about 30 minutes of voting, 45 members of the House voted against the decision to pay the allowance of the assembly members before the elections while 43 voted for the payment of the allowances before the election.
This decision still did not go down well with some of the elected assembly members who accused the government appointees of deciding the fate of the members of the assembly.
“Who do you think you are? Are you to tell us what to do at the assembly? We were elected and not you,” Mr Joseph Addo, the Assembly Member for Ngleshie Electoral Area, said angrily.
Throw of fists
As the exchange of insults was ongoing, the Assembly Member for Kinka Electoral Area, Mr Emmanuel Botchwey, suddenly threw a fist at the Assembly Member for Maamobi West Electoral Area, Alhaji Ibrahim Issah Bambara, who was by then trying to calm Mr Addo.
Alhaji Bambara, popularly called Cyborg, also returned the blow in a forceful manner that sent other members of the assembly to the ground breaking the glass podium of the assembly in the process.
It took the effort of some metro guards to bring back calm to the assembly hall of the AMA for the elections to be held.
The PM election
Standing for the third time since the assembly was inaugurated, Mr Thomas Mustapha Ashong, the Assembly Member for Darkuman West, was finally voted as the PM-elect of the assembly.
Mr Ashong, who stood unopposed, had 86 out of the 126 members of the assembly affirming their support to him, while 18 voted against him. Two votes were rejected.
He was earlier contested by Mr Desmond Nii Addo Biney, a three-term PM and Assembly Member for the Okponglo Electoral Area, but both of them were not able to secure 84 votes representing two-thirds of the total votes cast to secure the position.
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Giving his remarks, Mr Ashong thanked members of the assembly for their support and pledged to unite members of the assembly for the development of the metropolitan area.