We didn’t smuggle in E-Levy, minority knew when it was going to be tabled – Afenyo-Markin

Afenyo-Markin says day for consideration of E-Levy was advertised

We serve the minority notice through the order paper – MP

Minority requested for 30minutes to prepare before debate on E-Levy started

The Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, has denied assertions that the majority caucus of parliament re-laid the E-Levy Bill on the blind side of the minority so that they (the majority) can pass the bill.

In a JoyNews interview monitored by GhanaWeb, Afenyo-Markin said that the minority caucus was fully aware the bill was going to be tabled because the re-laying of the levy was advertised and the minority know that it was going to be considered on the day the bill was passed.

“We never smuggled anything in, we never surprised them, you know every Friday we read the business statement. The business statement has the proposal for the ensuing week. You don’t specifically advertise that you are going to take a particular bill, in that there is a position where you propose bills, papers to be laid, bills that are already in our custody will be considered."

“There are a lot of motions that are tabled, we never get to take them but as and when it has to be programmed that notice is served."

“So, we serve them notice though the other paper. The other paper is the document we use in serving notice, if as it where it was not listed on the order paper then you can say you have smuggled something in, even so, we do what we call order paper addendum," he said.

In his remarks, MP for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga, said that the minority caucus only knew the bill might be considered that particular week and not the particular day it would be passed.

Before the debate on the E-Levy bill began in Parliament, the minority caucus requested that the Speaker of Parliament gives them 30 minutes to prepare for the debate. The speaker, however, denied their request and the debate started.

The minority subsequently staged a walkout before the debate ended and E-Levy Bill was passed by the house with only members of the minority present after some amendments were made.

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