<<Print>>

The General Secretary of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), John Boadu has partly blamed the scuffle during the inauguration of the Members of Parliament for the 8th Parliament on the Clerk of Parliament.

According to him, the Clark of Parliament was intimidated unnecessarily by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament during the process of electing the next Speaker for the 8th Parliament.

Speaking on Okay FM’s 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, the NPP Chief Scribe asserted that the Clerk of Parliament could not stamp his authority firmly especially when he should have stopped the Member of Parliament-elect for Assin North from taking part in the swearing-in.

“Clerk of Parliament was intimidated unnecessarily. I believe that he could not stamp his authority firmly, because if someone comes to Parliament and a court of competent jurisdiction has place an injunction on him not to take part in the swearing-in ceremony and not hold himself as a Member of Parliament due to a pending case before the court against him, you don’t go and say that you have told him of the implication for taking part in the swearing-in ceremony,” he noted.

He said that the Clerk of Parliament could not enforce the Standing Orders of Parliament that states clearly the implications for the person who is not qualified to vote or act as a Parliamentarian due to the court injunction.

“ . . You must insist that the person is not qualified to vote, but if you leave the person with the choice to either move out or vote to face the consequences later, I believe that that decision of the Clerk did not help,” he said.

He reiterated that, “the Clerk should have carried out the order of the High Court to stop the MP-Elect for Assin North from taking part in the swearing-in ceremony; he could not stamp his authority effectively in that situation”.