The Member of Parliament (MP) for Asante Akyem North, Lawyer Appiah Kubi, has said the private members motion filed by the five NDC MPs requesting that parliament sets up a bi-partisan committee to probe into the 2020 elections should be treated with a pinch of salt.
According to the lawmaker, Parliament doesn’t have the capacity to grant such a request adding that the august house shouldn’t deviate from its duties.
Lawyer Kubi while speaking to Kwaku Dawuro said, “it’s not like once you present the motion then it’s adopted. Following the case between Justice Abdullai and the state, the supreme court has interpreted the constitution and established the need to form a quorum before a motion could be moved and adopted in Parliament. In any case, if you want to investigate procurement breaches, how does parliament come in when there is a procurement authority, what competence does parliament have to probe into procurement breaches?”, he asked.
He noted that the Auditor General is the constitutionally mandated person that could investigate into the account of the Electoral Commission, and since the Auditor General hasn’t released any report yet on the 2020 election spending, which report will the committee probe into?”,he questioned.
“When one has an issue with the Electoral Commission, the laws are clear on what to do. You go to the supreme court. Article 42 gives the EC an Independence to operate and you cannot subject it to any commission of inquiry”, he said.
He stressed that it is an attempt by the NDC MPs to create existing problems.
Lawyer Appiah Kubi urged that the motion should be treated with a pinch of salt, as the NDC was not able to provide evidence at the Supreme Court challenging the results of the 2020 elections.
This comes on the back of a private member’s motion requesting Parliament to constitute a bi-partisan committee to thoroughly review the processes and the procedures adopted by the Electoral Commission in the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary elections by 5 NDC MPs.
The Minority MPs also want the committee to inquire whether the Electoral Commission introduced ballot papers that were pre-thumb- printed and bore the stamp of the commission into the system.
The sponsors of the bill are Asawase MP, Muntaka Mubarak, MP for Bolga East, Dr. Dominic Ayine, MP for Akatsi South, Bernard Ahiafor, Buem MP, Kofi Adams and MP for Salaga South, Zuweira Ibrahimah.
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