The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has dismissed a motion filed by the Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, seeking to suspend the vetting of acting Chief Justice, Paul Baffoe-Bonnie.
The Minority Leader had argued that there was the need to suspend the betting until ongoing court cases involving former Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo are resolved.
Mr Afenyo-Markin noted that there are disputes surrounding the dismissal of the former Chief Justice; hence, it would not be prudent to vet the acting Chief Justice.
He claimed that the vetting he stated could amount to interference in judicial matters.
But delivering his ruling on the matter, Speaker Bagbin posited that Parliament’s legislative and oversight duties cannot be suspended at the instance of court actions.
He added that there was no constitutional or procedural basis for Parliament to suspend its work due to a pending court case.
“There is no constitutional or standing order basis for Parliament to hold the process simply because there are pending cases in court,” Mr Bagbin stated.
“Should I accept that argument, it will mean that any litigant could hold Parliament hostage—that is, file a case and freeze the work of Parliament and its committees.”
“The motion is inadmissible, and the same has been returned to the sponsor, the Minority Leader, Honourable Alexander Afenyo-Markin, as stated clearly by our standing orders,” he said.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
