By Edzorna Francis Mensah
“Admittedly, any opposition party may decide not to agree with the ruling party and our democracy is no exception to this development”.
These are words from the Majority Leader, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin on the floor of Parliament as he consoled himself by saying, “nonetheless, even in our disagreements, we must put the welfare and wellbeing of our people first and eschew any act that will deny our people the benefits they are likely to gain from our work as Parliamentarians; which is our utmost duty”.
He submitted that, they as MPs must understand that no Parliament can operate without cooperation and consensus-building and these must be their guiding principles; whether in opposition or in government because democracy according to him, is supposed to yield positive dividends to the people and they, as the elected representatives, have a key role to play in this regard, “we must therefore live up to our responsibility”.
In the spirit of consensus-building for good governance for growth and development, the Leader of Government Business, said, the situation where elected Members of this august House go to the media or resort to the use of other platforms to attack independent constitutional bodies and agencies such as the EC is reckless and unfortunate.
He said he does not wish to remind “Hon Members of the happenings around us (and globally) where the gains of democracy are increasingly being rolled back through military adventurism, coup d’états and terrorism which owe to some of these unguarded commentaries and statements by persons and officials of State who should rather be working to protect and safeguard the practice of constitutional governance”.
“It is imperative that we avoid any incendiary statements and accusations that can harm our democracy and the peace and unity we enjoy. Let us endeavor to preserve and protect our democracy Page 6 of 7 so that we can reap the gains and benefits thereof and bequeath to the future generation a prosperous and peaceful Ghana, he added.
He further reminded his colleagues that they are all beneficiaries of democratic governance and “it is incumbent upon us to ensure its sustenance and continuity and this can only be achieved by engendering the trust and confidence of the populace in the process. Democracy has brought so much benefit to this country that I expect every well-meaning citizen of this country to protect the peace and harmony we enjoy”.
