Committee!! Minority Flays Bagbin...Over Another Committee

The controversy over Mills� penchant for committees reared its head in Parliament on Friday, October 6th, when the Majority Leader, Alban Sumani Bagbin recommended to the august House the setting up of a Committee by the Business Committee to assist the Public Accounts Committee in its works on the Auditor General�s reports presented to the House. This suggestion was immediately attacked by the Minority Chief Whip, Mr. Frederick Opare Ansah. According to him, setting up a new committee to follow up on recommendations of the House to deal with relevant matters where necessary, was a waste of time, since the Public Accounts Committee is effective and has the powers to manage its own affairs properly. In a swift response by the Majority Leader who doubles as the Chairman of the Business Committee, he described Mr. Ansah�s comments as baseless since the House was aware of the workload of the Public Accounts Committee, which he believed needed assistance. �Madam Speaker, Members are aware that the workload on the Public Accounts Committee is too heavy. Parliament usually makes a number of important and far-reaching recommendations during debates on the Report of the Public Accounts Committee on Auditor-General�s Reports presented to the House. That is why the Business Committee is suggesting that another committee be set up to follow up on recommendations of the House�, he noted. Hon. Bagbin believes that the work of the new committee when set up would ease the workload of the Public Accounts Committee to perform its duties effectively and on time.