The Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Bagbin, has received support from the Minority in Parliament in his efforts to oppose proposals to cap the House’s budgetary allocation.
The government’s change, according to the Caucus, is an effort to divide Parliament, which they would oppose.
The decision to slash its expenditure by over 190 million Ghana Cedi’s and that of the judiciary by over 70 million Ghana Cedis, citing a shortfall in fiscal space, has been notified to the House by the Executive Secretary of the President, Nana Bediatuo Asante.
But it was refused by the Speaker.
It is constitutionally incorrect, he said, and it represents a move towards weakening Parliament’s supervisory duties.
“The budget is not for the Executive, we have the final power to approve or disapprove and so what the Constitution has done is for them to make recommendations and to negotiate during the deliberations of the budget before the House,” he said.
“It is not for the Executive to place a cap on the Judiciary and Parliament,” Bagbin said, “but we must do the right thing, and so throughout the consideration of the estimates, especially the Committees concerned, take that into account.” Get back to us at the end of the day and remind us what the agreed amount is, not the President’s ceiling.”
Haruna Iddrisu, leader of the Minority Parliament addressed the press and stressed that no effort could help the House to undermine the supervision of the House.
The executive cannot, according to him, have a way and refuse those arms of government.
“Those of you who are familiar with the constitution, we share the view that over the years because our constitution is heavy on an executive presidency, the executive has had its way with larger proportion and substantial amounts to undertake its activities but the legislature and others are being denied.”
Source: ATLFMNEWSROOM
