By Franklin ASARE-DONKOH
The General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, popularly known as General Mosquito, has intimated that the unanimous ruling by the Justices of the country’s apex court is inimical to our democracy.
The NDC Chief Scribe was of the opinion that there is no way any group of people will think the same way and manner on an issue like what the justices of the Supreme Court (SC) have displayed so far. He backed his claim with a quote by Karl Marx which read “There is no way two people can agree on an issue all the time, if they do then one is a lair”
He believes each of the seven justices ought to be given their written statement, stating their stands and if at the end they all come to an agreement then that would have helped strengthen our young democracy but not what they have been displaying lately. Saying it’s out of crushing of opinion that spark the truth.
Mr. Asiedu Nketiah, made this assertion when he appeared on the GTV’s Breakfast Show Wednesday, March 16, 2022.
Commenting on the unanimous ruling by the seven-member panel on the quorum judgment, the NDC General Secretary explained that he has read the 29 page ruling and realized the SC Justices weighed the need for impartiality against the right of representation.
”This is where the SC Justices got it wrong and confusing that Deputy Speakers’ constituents will be disadvantaged when they are presiding”, he maintained.
The NDC Chief Scribe reiterated that there is nothing like a casting vote in our Constitution or in the Standing Orders of Parliament.
“Why is the Speaker not allowed to be taken part in debates? It is because whoever is presiding must be exercise impartiality.” He disclosed.
Mr. Asiedu Nketiah, continued by saying “the SC ruling is absurd because with this kind of ruling, are they in any way suggesting that Speaker or Deputy Speakers presiding can take part in voice vote?”.
”If the person presiding didn’t partake in the voice vote which is the first step of the voting process, how can that same person partake in a voting process when a division is triggered when the speaker’s decision on a voice vote is interrupted or challenged?”, he enquired.
“No one can be a judge in his own case. The framers of the 1992 Republican Constitution put a premium on the need to avoid conflict of interest. Thus the carefully thought to excludes whoever is presiding not to have a vote”, the NDC Chief Scribe insisted.
Watch the full interview below;
