The Christian Council of Ghana has condemned the exchange of blows that ensued between the majority and the minority MPs in parliament on Monday, December 20, 2021 during voting on the proposed E-levy bill.
According to the Council, parliamentarians are respected and honoured in the Ghanaian society hence their medium should be used for dialogue on issues but not grounds for “boxing”.
“We respectfully remind parliamentarians that debates in Parliament must remain a platform for the exchange of ideas and not an opportunity for confusion and hostility. Ghanaians voted for you to engage in “debate not boxing.”
They added that, since it is “deeply concerned” over the conduct of the legislators in recent times it believes “such behaviors must not be allowed to continue especially due to the impact on the respect and dignity of the country.”
The Christian Council continued the precedents that was set in parliament by the MPs has deepens the country’s democratic gains over the past three decades.
“Our country’s lawmakers must show the way to protect and deepen democratic processes in our governance system. Unfortunately, what we saw in Parliament is a negation of Ghana’s democratic gains over the past thirty years,” the Christian Council noted.
The Christian Council then urged parliament to take urgent steps towards building consensus on the 2022 budget and ensure that steps are taken to prevent any future chaos occurring in Parliament.
“We therefore urge Parliament to as a matter of urgency build consensus to ensure that the nation has a budget to work with in 2022. We also urge the leadership of Parliament to put measures in place to prevent any future incidence of mayhem,” the statement added.
