NDC Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa says the party will amass its supporters to demonstrate against the already implemented E-levy if their case in court is thrown out.
His comment comes after the Attorney General filed a response to the Minority’s injunction to restrain the government from implementing the E-Levy policy.
The Attorney General, Godfred Dame, has said that parliament formed a quorum when the E-Levy policy was passed in March this year.
According to him, a total number of 266 Members of Parliament were present during the second reading of the policy.
He added that, “voting was by a voice vote and therefore allegations about the number present are immaterial.”
But, Mr Okudzeto Ablakwa described Mr Dame’s comments as ‘pathetic, insulting and dishonest’.
In a Facebook post, the lawmaker said the minority aims to stand up against the government as Article 3 of the 1992 Constitution demands, adding that should they fail in court, they will take to the streets.
“The only antidote for bullies and despots is to stand up and confront them as Article 3 of the 1992 Constitution demands of us. We shall stand up to them in the Supreme Court on Wednesday the 4th of May; if we strangely fail in the courts as the Majority Group Leader and other NPP officials are curiously predicting, we shall take over the streets,” he said.
Read below his full post on Facebook
This is the day the Akufo-Addo government is determined to show Ghanaians and the world just how lawless, undemocratic and tyrannical they are by going ahead to wickedly impose the unconstitutional E-Levy.
But they underestimate the anger and resolve of Ghanaians.
We have read the pathetic, insulting and dishonest response of the Attorney General to our case in court — he ridiculously seeks refuge in voice votes as though constitutional quorum thresholds don’t apply to voice votes. He very much knows that irrespective of the voting method in parliament— either by voice, headcount or secret ballot, the same constitutional quorum standards apply.
Or is The AG — government’s principal legal adviser, claiming to possess some supernatural powers capable of miraculously adding Adwoa Safo and Kojo Kum’s voices to a voice vote even though they were both not in the chamber of parliament present and voting? Surely, this defence and government’s infamous Neutrality Allowance will keenly compete for Ghana’s Most Ridiculous Award of the Decade.
The only antidote for bullies and despots is to stand up and confront them as Article 3 of the 1992 Constitution demands of us.
We shall stand up to them in the Supreme Court on Wednesday the 4th of May; if we strangely fail in the courts as the Majority Group Leader and other NPP officials are curiously predicting, we shall take over the streets — what Nana Akufo-Addo (as he then was) did to the Rawlings government in 1995 with his VAT kumepreko demonstrations would be considered child’s play when historical comparisons are made. Don’t you mess with our unflinching resolve as the people’s representatives to stand with the suffering masses of our country.
We refuse to be counted amongst the leaders who painfully betrayed the Ghanaian people.
Governmental lawlessness and State-sponsored vandalization of our Constitution shall be defeated!
Our fervent prayer on this Sabbath day which the Lord commands us in Exodus 20:8 to keep holy but has unfortunately been violently desecrated by iniquitous merchants of an unconstitutional E-Levy is rather simple: “May God help us resist oppressor’s rule.”
Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.com/ghana
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Loss talk… Did your party obey a court order when MP Quayson was asked to step aside as MP? You think you are doing Nana Addo! It will come back to you. These reckless writing is what the US State Department and the BBC’s pick up! Wise up!
GHANAIANS ALWAYS WANT TO LEAVE FOR FREE DR. NKRUMA SHOULD HAVE INITIATE TAX POLICE DURING THE FIFTIES AND SIXTIES WHILE THE BRITISH AND OTHER EUROPEANS HAVE THE TAX POLICY THEY FAIL TO DO THAT HERE BECAUSE THEY WERE STEALING OUR MINERALS AND DIDN'T WANT US TO TALK AGAINST THAT. THAT IS OUR PROBLEM TODAY, WHEN YOU COME TO NORTH AMERICA TODAY WHEN YOU GET PAID FEDERAL TAXES ARE DEDUCTED, PENSION, UNEMPLOYMENT IS DEDUCTED. ONCE YOUR READY TO SPEND YOUR MONEY YOU PAY 13% TAX ON EVERYTHING. THIS WEEK PETROL REGULAR IS CDN$1.19 AND DIESEL IS CDN$ 2.21 AND GOE UP BASED ON WHICH BLEND YOU WANT TO FILL.
If you knew you will fault short at court. Why going to court. The demonstration cannot reverse the E levy.
Shameful and Deceptive NDC. They don't think anything good for Ghana. They only think CREATE, LOOT & SHARE. Wait, most Ghanaians are going to be educated and you will see where your propaganda will lie! Are you not the same NDC who told gullible Ghanaians NOT to register and get the Ghana Card? What is happening to those now?
Okudzetu Ablakwa is the most pathetic MP of all time. You go to court with the notion of winning. Another defends with the same notion, and you think he is disrespectful. The MP should know that two lawyers go to court to win their cases but in the end, only one will be victorious. The MP should go to do law and he will appreciate what it takes to win cases in the courts and not the populist way he always wants to go.
Unbelievable this threat is coming from a seasoned MP. Even a seven year old can tell you that NDC will not succeed in this futile attempt to derail the progress the government is making. This dead on arrival political gimmickry ( and more to follow) will of course be added by John Mahama to the tally of so-called ‘skewed judgments’ against the NDC. What a shame!!!
Gyimie saaaaaa, noo alternatives. Your party members took double salaries for 8years and took double ex-gratia , why don’t you demonstrate against those who robbed the state? Only fooools would join such demonstration because you tax condom and machetes under mahama airbus. E-levy is not compulsory, you can choose not to send money through that system and nobody can force you. Tell Ghanaians how you became rich just after college tell them like the way Hon Ken Agyapong tells his story to the youth. You and your party ndc should be ashamed of yourselves, eviiiiiillll ndc. Ghanaians suffered under your EviiiiLL party for 8 good years, dumsor was the order of the day, create looot and share party, ***barred word*** calling themselves politicians.
Incredibly ***barred word*** talk from Ablakwa. You swore to uphold rule of law and Supreme Court verdict is final. To avoid paying taxes in future, support the prosecution of corrupt officials involved in housing project etc under Mahama government to protect revenue generation.