Fights in parliament ‘very’ good – Asiedu Nketia

MPs engage in fisticuffs over E-levy

Government in last-minute push for bill approval

It is wrong for Joe Wise to attempt voting whiles presiding, Asiedu Nketia

General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has stated that the fisticuffs that have occurred in the 8th parliament bode well for the democracy of the country.

According to him, the constitution enjoins citizens to ‘fight’ to uphold every stipulated provision within it.

Speaking on “The Pulse” on Joy News on Monday, January 31, the chief scribe of the NDC said members of Parliament were only doing their bit to prevent abuse of the Constitution.

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“I think that what is happening in our parliament is good because I participated in writing the Constitution and we put in there that everybody, every citizen must fight and protect the constitution with all your might and with all your heart and with everything. So at any point in time, whether it takes fisticuffs to defend the constitution, so be it. Fighting may not be good but it is worse to sit down unconcerned…” he said.

“Has anybody suggested for instance to us that where you have a Speaker who the Constitution denies the opportunity to vote while sitting decides that in spite of what has been provided in the constitution, I am going to have a vote and influence a decision?

“They have no option so I am endorsing it fully. This is reasonable force…this is to prevent the abuse of the Constitution. You have written in black and white in the constitution that when you are presiding over parliament, you don’t have a vote,” Johnson Asiedu Nketia added.

It will be recalled that the 8th parliament described as a hung parliament has witnessed two major incidences of fisticuffs.

First was during the inauguration and election of a Speaker on the night of January 7, 2021 whiles the second was debate and voting on the controversial E-levy bill on Monday, December 20, 2021

Parliamentary sitting on the day was a sight to behold as parliamentarians threw punches at each other. This followed a disagreement on whether to allow Joe Wise to participate in the voting process.

Earlier before the parliamentary sitting was suspended for Joe Wise to take the chair, Second Deputy Speaker, Andrew Asiamah had ruled on a voice vote in favour of the Majority to have the bill considered under a certificate of urgency.

Registering his displeasure with the ruling, Minority Chief Whip Muntaka Mubarak called for a vote of division where all non-MPs vacate the lobby whiles MPs proceed with the voting process.

Andrew Asiamah suspended the parliamentary sitting for an hour only for the House to resume with Joe Wise in the chair.

After hearing what had transpired, he agreed to the minority’s request for a vote of division but announced that he will participate in the voting process.

The voting began with each MP on the majority side name being mentioned and counted but chaos broke out on the floor of parliament when Joe Osei-Owusu attempted to give way to Andrew Asiamah to take over proceedings to enable him to cast his ballot.