Members of the minority side in parliament on Wednesday went against an order by the Speaker as they displayed placards after Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, presented the budget statement and economic policy for 2020.
The placards with the inscription ‘Bye Bye Budget’ seemed to be the minority’s way of telling the ruling government that the budget was uninspiring, hence, was obviously cementing its defeat in the 2020 election.
Despite the speaker’s caution that the minority was going against the rules of the house, the side kept on with the act.
The minority came under a lot of criticisms in February when they displayed ‘Bloody widow’ placards during the swearing-in of the Member of Parliament for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Lydia Seyram Alhassan.
The minority’s act at the time, they maintained, was in protest of violence that broke out at one polling station during the constituency’s by-election in January.
After failing to heed to calls to apologise for their actions, an investigation commenced to find the MPs involved and haul them before the Privileges Committee of Parliament.
The matter, however, died down after the Office of the Clerk of Parliament failed to identify the MPs despite viewing the footage in Parliament from that day.
Majority Leader, Osei-Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, later disclosed that parliament may soon ban the display of placards in the chamber. He said such activities should not be encouraged as they go a long way to affect the image of parliament.
In 2013, then-Speaker of parliament, Edward Doe Adjaho, described the act as un-parliamentary but the narrative remains unchanged.
