Ghana’s Speaker of Parliament, Right. Honourable Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, seems to be attracting the attention of many Ghanaians when on two consecutive occasions he appeared before the House in an orthodox costume.
Mr. Alban Bagbin on Tuesday, January 25, 2022, showed up on the floor of the Parliament in an apparel-looking regal, as of a chief from the Volta Region.
He was dressed in royal kente cloth, beneath which he wore a white shirt and a headband with some locally produced accessories made of beads. His footwear was a traditional flip-flop called “Chaochao”
This was unusual of a conventional Speaker of Parliament as wearing a suit and tie or traditional attires particularly Caftan overlaid with a robe, is typical of Ghanaian male Speakers.
Alban Bagbin on the floor of the House said of his own outfit: “Hon. Members, this is the Parliament of Ghana, a unique made in Ghana product and we must showcase and market it to the world as a brand.”
A chief from Ho, the capital of the Volta Region, reacted commending him for showing leadership in the efforts to promote the Ghanaian culture through wearing African and Ghanaian-made clothes.
He said in a report filed by GhanaWeb, “like the Rt. Hon. Speaker said, I think that this is long overdue, it is good that he set the pace for all us Ghanaians. Let us promote made-in Ghana goods and our culture.”
Many Ghanaians were even much more thrilled to see him on Thursday, January 27, 2022, when he appeared in a smock and three-quarter pants.
The smock had a yellow patch at the back and the same running from the upper shoulders down to the mid-section on the front of the smock, with red boots to match.
The outfit represented a chief from the Northern Region of the country.
Mr. Bagbin’s switch from the corporate style of dressing to the traditional seems to many as a resolution he has made for the year to portray the nation’s indigenous beautiful culture.
This drew a series of reactions from social media users particularly on Twitter and Instagram.
@SirRay92 replied to the photo of the Speaker urging him to keep it up.
@Bonkena81 in his comment on the Speakers’ outfit hoped to see more.
On Instagram, some followers of a blogger, Nkonkinsah, wrote on a post concerning his outfit “the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin walked into the chamber today with another traditional outfit”
This also got many followers pouring in their comments.
A follower said in the reaction, “Speaker for changing the status quo”
One Emmanuel Fiadoyor wrote believes that by promoting the locally manufactured products, the producers will earn a living out of it.
Meanwhile, there have been some negative reactions to the post of Mr. Alban Bagbin.
Some of the responses thus say:
Another respondent wrote on the page:
