The Minority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak, has filed a motion calling for the referral of three MPs, Sarah Adwoa Safo, Henry Quartey, and Kennedy Agyepong, to the Privileges Committee for absenting themselves for over 15 sittings to be reversed.
In the motion cited by Citi News, Mr. Mubarak called on Parliament “to revoke, cancel or rescind the referral made by The Rt. Hon. Speaker on the 5TH Day of April 2022, to the committee on Privileges to consider the issue of absence without permission from the House under Article 97 (1) (c) of the constitution and Standing Orders 15 and 16 of Honourables Sarah Adwoa Sarfo, Henry Quartey and Kennedy Ohene Agyapong.”
While referring the three MPs to the committee, the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, said the absence of the MPs without his permission constitutes a breach of the rules of the house.
In Parliament on Tuesday, Mr. Bagbin urged the committee to provide its report to the house two weeks after the House reconvenes from its recess.
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A former MP for Kumbumgu, Ras Mubarak, petitioned the Speaker of Parliament to tackle absenteeism in Parliament.
He cited Dome-Kwabenya MP, Sarah Adwoa Safo; Henry Quartey, the MP for Ayawaso Central, and Ebenezer Kojo Kum, the MP for Ahanta West and Ken Ohene Agyapong, MP for Assin Central as MPs who he said had flouted provisions of Article 97(1)(c) of the Constitution.
He also said they had breached Parliament’s Standing Order 16(1) which frowns on Members absenting themselves for 15 sitting days without permission from the Speaker.
Per Article 97(1)(c) of the 1992 Constitution, a Member of Parliament shall vacate his seat “if he is absent, without the permission in writing of the Speaker, and he is unable to offer a reasonable explanation to the Parliamentary Committee on Privileges from fifteen sittings of a meeting of Parliament during any period that Parliament has been summoned to meet and continues to meet.”
