Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Abena Osei-Asare, has raised concerns over the disruption of a committee sitting following the withdrawal of Majority members to attend plenary proceedings.
She said the development stalled the committee’s work on Wednesday, March 25 on the Auditor-General’s report on government payables and commitments as of December 2024.
Addressing the Parliament of Ghana on Wednesday, March 25, Mrs Osei-Asare explained that although the committee began its sitting as scheduled, the session was abruptly interrupted when the Majority Chief Whip, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, directed members on his side to leave proceedings to help form a quorum in the chamber.
According to her, the absence of key members made it impossible for the committee to proceed, forcing the suspension of the sitting and the dismissal of invited stakeholders.
Mr Speaker, a report on the special audits was referred to the Public Accounts Committee, and we were given timelines within which to work and present our findings. We began today [March 25] at nine o’clock. Around 11:15 a.m., one of the whips from the Majority side came in and said they had to excuse their members. Without the required ranking members, we could not continue, she said.
She expressed concern about meeting the committee’s deadline and appealed for guidance on how to proceed, given that the work had already commenced within the stipulated timeframe.
So today, we had to halt proceedings and ask the invitees to leave and return at another time. I seek your guidance on the way forward, considering the timelines and the fact that all invitees were present, she stated.
In response, Mr Dafeamekpor rejected suggestions that the Majority was attempting to undermine the committee’s work, explaining that the decision was necessitated by the heavy workload in Parliament.
He noted that a prior agreement had been reached to temporarily suspend committee sittings to prioritise plenary business, adding that alternative arrangements had been proposed to avoid committee sitting clashing with plenary business.
Mr Speaker, the impression that we are not interested in the committee’s work is not accurate. We met yesterday [March 24] and decided that, because of the heavy nature of business, committee activities should be suspended until Friday, he said.
We suggested that committees could sit after adjournment or between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. before plenary begins. If committee sittings clash with plenary, it affects our numbers and raises issues of quorum, he added.
Mr Dafeamekpor assured that the committee would still have adequate time to complete its work within the stipulated timeframe.
He assured that the PAC would still have sufficient time to complete its assignment and submit its report within the required timeline.
