Friction Between NPP & NDC MPs Has Reached Abnormal Level – Leader

Deputy Majority Chief Whip, Mathew Nyindam has said the strife between the Majority and Minority sides in Parliament is worsening each passing day saying it has gotten to an abnormal level.

According to him, the strained relationship between the two sides is difficult to comprehend, adding that it doesn’t auger well for the country’s democratic development.

The two sides in Ghana’s Parliament have for most part of this week traded accusations against each other.

Just yesterday (Thursday), the Minority National Democratic Congress (NDC) side complained bitterly about the conduct of the Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana, Rt. Hon. Prof. Aaron Michael Oquaye, with the MPs threatening to initiate impeachment process against him.

In the view of the NDC MPs, the Speaker has since the inception of the 7th Parliament of the 4th Republic, been bias against them, cataloging a number of critical moments where the Rt. Hon. Prof. Oquaye has denied them to either voice out their displeasure or question ministers of state that appear before the legislature to answer to issues relating to their ministry.

Whereas the Majority Leader and Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Osei Kyei-Mensah, has also claimed that despite the former Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Edward Doe Adjaho, has gone on retirement, his (Adjaho’s) presence could still be felt in the House.

Hon. Adjaho, the Majority Leader alleges, is “still trying to control Parliament” using the Minority National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament (MPs) as conduit.

“I will tell you, the man [Hon. Doe Adjaho] is behind the scenes. He still wants to control Parliament. Do you know what happened yesterday? Yesterday, he even called them [NDC MPs] when we were meeting the Electoral Commissioner [Charlotte Osei] and told them they should not agree for us in the Committee of the Whole for you the press to be present. That man [Adjaho] thinks he is still in control,” he alleged.

But speaking to Starr News, Hon. Mathew Nyindam bemoaned the current situation in Parliament saying in as much as the NPP Majority has huge numbers in the Legislature it doesn’t intend to use its numbers to governing Parliament.

“If you look at the current Leadership from the advice we’re picking from government, yes, it is true that we have the numbers but we don’t want to govern Parliament by using that Majority having their way all the time and Minority having their say. We don’t believe in that. If you look at the Majority in Parliament it is clear that anytime the Minority tries to come up with the issue and there’s some kind of reasoning, we give in, we look at it positively minded and then we come out at the end of the day to develop our democracy. But this kind of behaviour they are putting up some of us think that it is seriously unfortunate.”