About 40 Members of Parliament with the National Democratic Congress have taken up seats on the majority side of the House, leaving the minority side completely vacant.
This marks the second instance of the NDC Caucus implementing this ‘unconventional arrangement’.
Two weeks ago, both NDC and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs occupied the majority side of the House amidst ongoing confusion over which party holds the majority.
It came after Speaker Alban Bagbin declared four vacant parliamentary seats on October 17.
Despite petitioning the Speaker to reconvene Parliament, JoyNews’ Parliamentary Correspondent, Kwaku Asante, reports that no lawmaker of the NPP Caucus has entered the chamber.
According to him, approximately 40 lawmakers from the NDC Caucus are currently in the House.
Confusion over which party holds a majority in Parliament started following Speaker Alban Bagbin’s declaration of four vacant parliamentary seats on October 17.
The development came after the declaration by Speaker Bagbin that four parliamentary seats—three held by the NPP and one by the NDC—were vacant, shifting the balance of power in Parliament.
With the NDC claiming 136 seats and the NPP reduced to 135, the NDC quickly asserted itself as the new majority.
However, on Friday, October 18, the Supreme Court issued a stay of execution on Speaker Bagbin’s decision, ruling that the four MPs must be allowed to continue representing their constituencies until the court reaches a final decision.
Despite the court’s ruling, the NDC caucus has refused to relinquish its newly claimed majority status.
Credit: Ama Cromwell
