Since the inception of the fourth republic, our current Parliament is the ninth Parliament in succession.
This positive attainment should be credited to Ghanaians.
Parliamentary democracy is the way to go, no matter the challenges facing it.
When we put our efforts together, we shall surmount them.
Parliament basically is the citadel of Democracy and it is the forum that congregates our 276 elected members, who the constitution has mandated to represent the population of 35 million citizens.
These Hon Members perform the functions of representation, legislation, oversight and debating or deliberation.
They perform other ancillary roles which are to benefit the nation or the population.
Our Members of Parliament are also expected to scrutinize the activities of the Executive and hold them accountable to the people.
They approve the purse for the Executive, Judiciary and itself, the Legislature.
The budgets of other constitutional bodies are also scrutinized and approved by the House.
The various Committees of the House are also performing their operational roles.
It must be stated that our Hon Members, should ensure that their activities both on the floor of the House and beyond the four halls of the chamber are exemplary and copious.
Parliament as an institution, is the heartbeat of the country as the population is represented there.,(Supra).
The 276 elected men and women should conduct their affairs with civil and diplomacy.
They should be the champions of civility and diplomacy.
The 1992 Constitution and the Standing Orders are the ‘sacred’ books for our Hon MPs as they carry out their responsibilities.
Their fundamental activities are mostly referred to the two main books. Other official materials are allowed for consultation by the Hon Members during their sittings.
The image of Parliament can be protected when our Hon members also act civilly and diplomatically as stated.
The optics of throwing salvos, using unprintable words and other aggressive posture should be discarded.
The members of the parliamentary press corps, the in-house professionals who report from the House will not do anything to demean the image of Parliament.
The Corps and the House are partners in the development of our nascent democracy and they should not do anything to thwart the effort of the Speaker and the leadership to change and improve the image of the House.
It must be noted that when a member of parliament does anything untoward, directly or indirectly, it goes to affect the image of the institution, it does not matter the political party’s stock the member comes from.
In the recent workshop organized by Parliament for the press corps, issues about the image of Parliament were discussed thoroughly.
The Speakers at the workshop which included the newly appointed Majority Leader, Hon James Agalga, Hon John Darko, who represented the Minority Leader, the Clerk to Parliament Rev Ebenezer Ahumah Djietro, Dr Kate Addo, head of Information outfit of Parliament and Sebastian Damuah, Director, Media Relations all stressed the relevance of good relationships between the House and Corps.
They also encouraged the members of the corps to exhibit objectivity, fairness and accuracy in their work.
It must be noted that Ghana’s Parliament has been adjudged as the second best in West Africa after Cape Verde when it comes to openness and quality of debates.
The leadership traits being exhibited by the Speaker and the leaders are contributive factors in the success of our Parliament.
The Clerk and his staff cannot be sidelined in this pot of glory.
All efforts should be made to sustain the buzzing achievements of our Parliament.
Our Hon members should continue to relate well with the citizens and place Ghana above their political and partisan considerations.
Representation should be encouraged, and members should make representation as a cardinal function of their role.
The image of members should be considered thoroughly through appearance, communication, use of civil language, the quality of debates and other important factors.
The Parliamentary press corps is ready to help Parliament to continue to improve its image but our MPs too should assist in this endeavour.
Together, we will continue to sustain our democracy.
An excellent relationship between the House and the Corps should be encouraged at all times.
Ahmed
The Servant
