To ensure that citizens of countries who practice democracy reap the dividends thereof, the French philosopher, Baron de Montesquieu proposed the concept of Separation of Powers and checks and balances as one of the pillars on which democracy can thrive.
This concept, though viewed by many as a mere theory which cannot be easily practicalised, one can attest to the fact that the concept of checks and balances have been well demonstrated in Ghana’s parliament in recent times, with the aid of a strong minority and a Speaker from an opposition party.
Although the executive arm of government sometimes manages to bulldoze its way through, using the majority caucus, one cannot overlook the impact this concept of checks and balances have had on recent government policies.
During the last recess of parliament, the scrutiny of the appropriation bills by the minority side saved the country some millions of cedis. The group, with the support of the majority side managed to quash an amount of GH₵80m which the government intended to set aside for the construction of the embattled national cathedral.
They again ensured that an amount of GH₵1.3B for the demolition and redevelopment of the Accra International Conference Center, a GH₵1.4B deposit into the Contingency Vault and monies to establish new diplomatic missions in Jamaica, Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago all did not find their way into the appropriation.
The Public Accounts Committee, which is chaired by a member of the minority caucus, is also recovering monies from various Ministries, Departments and Agencies into the government chest.
From the above instances, one can attest to the fact that a strong opposition in parliament is a healthy ingredient for our democracy. This is why The Chronicle is concerned about the recent brouhaha in the minority caucus which was occasioned by the changes in the leadership of the caucus.
Readers will recall that on Tuesday January 24, a letter signed by the General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress, Mr Fifi Fiavi Kwetey indicated that three leaders of the Minority caucus had been removed and replaced.
The affected leaders were Minority Leader, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Deputy Minority Leader, Mr James Klutse Avedzi and Minority Chief Whip, Mr Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak.
Dr Cassiel Ato Forson and Mr Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah were named as Minority Leader and deputy Minority Leader respectively. However, these changes have not sat well with some of the caucus and party members.
But looking at the dividends that we have gained from the minority in these past few months, The Chronicle cannot but appeal to the caucus and the party executives to ensure that they put their house in order before parliament resumes.
We need a unified opposition to help run the business of parliament to ensure that the oversight responsibility of the House is well executed.
While we make the appeal, we are also by this Editorial calling on the party executives to take the concerns of the members into account.
Many of the caucus as well as the rank and file of the party have lamented about the lack of consultation in arriving at the decision that saw the dismissal of the leaders. We, therefore, beseech the party to take these issues into consideration and address them in order to avoid future occurrences.
We look forward to a unified minority caucus on February 7, 2023.
