Parliament fails to adopt €20 million loan

Parliament on Friday failed to adopt the motion on a loan agreement between the government and the German Development Bank Group for an amount of €20 million for lack of a quorum.

The facility is to finance the Green Credit Line under the Reform and Investment Partnership between the two countries would help cut down on carbon emissions.

On Friday, Mr Frank Annoh-Dompreh, Majority Chief Whip asked the First Deputy Speaker, Mr Joseph Osei-Owusu, who presided over the sitting to put the question on the motion to be taken because the debate on the matter had been concluded

He said the Leadership of the House had reached some agreement on the issue after it was suspended.

However, Mr Bernard Ahiafor, the Ranking Member on Constitutional and Legal Affairs, raised an issue with the procedure, citing Article 104 (1) of the 1992 Constitution that the House did not seem to have the decision-making quorum looking at the numbers present.

He said the recent Supreme Court ruling was clear on the decision-making quorum that at least the majority of the members must be present and the number in the House did not have members to adopt the motion for the loan agreement.

“Mr Speaker we will be violating Article 104 (1) of the 1992 constitution and will be in contempt of court if we follow the procedure when we do not have the numbers,” he said.

However, Mr Alexander Afenyo-Markin, accused the Minority of “picking and choosing” and that even before this motion had earlier supported the motion on the Criminal and other Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2021.

He said the basis for the Minority’s argument against the House adopting the motion was not right.

However, Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, Minority Chief Whip drew the House’s attention to the claim by Mr Afenyo-Markin that though they did not have the numbers yet supported the motion on the Criminal and other Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2021.

He said if the claim by the Deputy Majority Leader was right then the purported approval of the motion on the Criminal and other Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2021 should be rescinded because the House did not have numbers to take that decision.

Mr Osei-Owusu subsequently adjourned the House to Tuesday, March 22, 2022.