Parliament approves 2022 Budget despite Minority Caucus boycott

The Majority in Parliament has approved the 2022 budget statement in the absence of the Minority Members of Parliament.

Today’s proceedings were delayed for several hours due to meetings between the Majority and Minority leadership.

However, when discussions began on the floor of the House, the Minority MP’s had boycotted the session.

Last week Friday, the Minority leadership had on a 137 vote, rejected the 2022 budget statement.

According to the Majority, the act by the Minority fails to meet the constitutional requirement of 138 MPs present in the House before a decision can be made.

Upon a motion by Majority leader Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu, the House voted, and First Deputy Speaker, Joseph Osei Owusu ruled that the earlier decision by the Minority members had no effect and that it violated Article 104 (1).

The First Deputy Speaker, Joseph Osei Owusu also counted himself as an MP, hence, giving the Majority Caucus 138 members to pass the votes.

However, there have been debates as to whether the Speaker acted rightly in counting himself as MP for Bekwai.

Lawyer Sammy Darko for instance has argued that the First Deputy Speaker erred in that regard, citing Parliament’s Standing Orders of 109 (3).

Nonetheless, a senior lecturer at the GIMPA School of Law, Clement Akapame says even though the Speaker per the orders is disabled from voting, he is counted as an MP present in Parliament.

Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta who was present at the House, said at committee meetings, it would address the concerns of the Minority in its Sunday letter of November 28, 2021.

In the letter of the Minority, it stated that it wanted a revised budget to address five things. These were a suspension of the E-levy, withdrawal of the Agyapa deal, that issues of the tidal waves disaster be addressed, a review of benchmark values for imports and reconstruct the wording to the Aker Energy deal.