The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has directed Parliamentary Clerks at Table to strictly record the attendance of Members of Parliament (MPs) and enforce disciplinary action against lawmakers who absent themselves without permission.
Addressing the House during proceedings on Tuesday, October 28, 2025, the Speaker expressed frustration over what he described as a growing trend of absenteeism among MPs. He warned that those who fail to sign out properly or absent themselves without approval will face sanctions.
“Before usually I comment on this, I always take account of those present. I am not happy with the situation,” Mr. Bagbin stated.
“I did indicate from the very beginning of this meeting that I have the records of attendance for the first meeting and the second meeting. I decided, for good reason, not to publish them, but to give you the last opportunity. It looks like this was a catastrophic mistake.”
Mr. Bagbin indicated that although he initially refrained from publishing the attendance records, the continuous absence of MPs without official permission has compelled him to take a tougher stance.
“I should have brought it out and referred Members to the Privileges Committee. I am saying this for the last time. I have given the directive to the Clerks at Table to take the records for this meeting. We have the standing orders. We know what they say,” he said.
He further emphasized that MPs who repeatedly fail to attend sittings risk being deemed to have vacated their seats.
“We will be taking action to make sure that we compel Members to sit or to be considered to have vacated their seats. On this matter, I will say no more.”
The Speaker’s directive reinforces Parliament’s Standing Orders, which stipulate that legislators who absent themselves for 15 sitting days without written permission could lose their seats.
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Source: Frederick Kofi Thompson-Quartey/ATLFMNEWS
