Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, the Speaker of Parliament, has cautioned the Members of Parliament and asserted that the dignity of Parliament requires that its rules and privileges be respected, as he pledged commitment to fully upholding the constitutional and procedural protections afforded to every member of this House.
He asked the MPs to rededicate themselves to the work ahead with patriotism, unity of purpose, and collective resolve to secure the interest of the nation, “always bearing in mind our solemn duty to the people of Ghana”.
In his opening remarks to welcome MPs back into the chamber to the commencement of the 2nd meeting of the 1st session of the 9th parliament, 27th may, 2025, Speaker Bagbin was loud and clear to the effect that “parliamentary privilege is not immunity from lawful inquiry. It is not a licence to disregard the law. The immunities granted to this House and its members are designed to protect the independence of the legislature, not to obstruct justice. These provisions are institutional safeguards. They were never intended as escape routes for Hon Members”.
He stressed, “when allegations are raised, due processes must take their course. Our position on this is unnegotiable: Parliament will not stand by while members are subjected to unlawful or politically motivated persecution. But neither will Parliament offer protection to those who seek to misuse its privileges to frustrate legitimate investigations”.
He submitted that “privilege is not impunity. Immunity is not invisibility. The law binds us all. And the law is the law”.
The Speaker used the opportunity to highlight a few of the items listed in the Draft Agenda for this Meeting as follows:
- The Ghana Cocoa Board (Amendment) Bill, 2025;
- Three Private Members’ Bills, the Property Rights of Spouses Bill, 2025, Constitution of the Republic of Ghana (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, have completed the processes as required by the Standing Orders and are expected to be presented for First Reading during this Meeting;
- We also expect to lay for consideration of the House, the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Regulations, 2025.
According to him, so far, 17 Papers are ready to be presented to the House for consideration. But I must hasten to add that the House is yet to receive the full list of proposed public business from the Government. Members’ business will come as they are ready and admitted by me.
“We also have four reports that are pending before the Committees. We furthermore expect to tackle the reports of our two ad hoc committees:
- The Report on the Ad hoc Committee established to investigate the violent disorder that characterised the Meetings of the Appointments Committee on Thursday, 30th and Friday 31st January 2025; and
- The Report of the Ad hoc Committee on the Design of a Pension Scheme for Members of Parliament.
Added to these is the Ada Songor Lagoon Salt Mining report must be tracked, and followed through to a logical conclusion.
