Parliament this week: Speaker swears in Gyakye Quayson Tuesday

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, will swear in the Member of Parliament-elect (MP-elect) for Assin North, James Gyakye Quayson.

The ceremony will take centre stage in this week's activities in Parliament with barely four weeks for the House to adjourn sine die.

The Speaker, on a visit to Daily Graphic last Thursday, indicated that the MP was billed to be sworn in that day but a letter from the Electoral Commission (EC) to the Speaker's office was delayed.

And following the absence of the Speaker on Friday, the ceremony has been pushed to Tuesday.

Mr Quayson, whose election as the MP for Assin North in the 2020 general election was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court which directed that his name should be expunged from the records of Parliament, won the Assin North by-poll conducted by the EC on Tuesday, June 27, this year.

He is expected to be sworn in by the Speaker of Parliament, Mr Bagbin as the House resumes sitting this week, beginning from Tuesday, July 4 to Friday, July 7, 2023.

Ministers

Beyond Quayson's swearing-in, the House is expected to host six ministers to respond to 54 questions.

They are, the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta; the Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum; the Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu; the Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful; the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwasi  Amoako- Attah, and the Minister of Youth and Sports, Mustapha Ussif.

Among the questions expected to be asked would be one by the MP for Tamale South and former Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, on how much the government of Ghana owes various pension schemes, including the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).

Presenting the Business Statement last Friday for the week, the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, urged committees with referrals, particularly on some seven Bills, to expedite action on them.

Bills

The Bills are the Grains Development Authority Bill, 2022; the Wildlife Resources Management Bill, 2022; the Ghana Industrial Property Office Bill, 2023 and the Rent Bill, 2023.

The rest of the bills are the Budget Bill, 2023; the Criminal Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2022, and the National Petroleum Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2023. 

Papers and Reports

The Majority Leader said the House might also admit statements from MPs, as well as papers and Reports from committees might be laid.

Among them is the report of the Auditor-General on the Public Accounts of Ghana — ministries, departments and other agencies for the financial year ending December 31, 2022.