On the part of parliament, the exchanges on the issue had been led by the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin which gave off the impression that Parliament as an institution was in on this one.
Again, a statement from the Parliamentary Service had also given indication that Parliament was all out against the police on how it is handling the case. Parliament in the statement said it takes strong exceptions to the manner the Ghana Police Service was seeking to apprehend the legislator over alleged wrongdoing.
But a statement from the majority caucus on Thursday, November 4, 2021, made erroneous such assumption as that side of the house disassociated itself from the actions of the Speaker.
In a press statement, the majority said Speaker Bagbin’s failure to release Sosu to the police was a slap in the face of the law and a deviation from the norm.
“The Majority Leadership views the foregoing response by Speaker Bagbin as a troubling departure from how his predecessors handled such requests. To avoid doubt, when both Rt Hons Joyce Bamford Addo and Edward Doe Adjaho received those requests during their days in office, they responded by inviting the relevant MPs, held discussions with them, and then asked them to report to the requesting Police or investigative authorities."
“Again, during his tenure as Speaker, Rt Hon Professor Mike Oquaye modified the arrangement, including making the Speaker's Conference Room available to the Police to meet with MPs they were interested in and to conduct initial investigations. He did this to protect the dignity of MPs while at the same time ensuring that MPs are not put above the law. At all these times, Hon Bagbin, as he then was, had been part of the leadership of the House,” their statement read in part.
According to the Majority, the Speaker by his actions is setting a trend that undermines the rule of law and that Parliament must be seen to be collaborating with the police instead of creating a false regime of separate laws in the country.
“Now the Speaker of Ghana's Parliament, Rt Hon Bagbin, appears to be instituting new rules that seem to undermine the Rule of Law without any prior discussions with the Leadership of the House. We ask: What exactly has changed?
“As a group, the Majority believes firmly that constitutionally guaranteed immunity for MPs in our democracy must not only be protected always but jealously guarded as well. However, never should we, as a Parliament, make the mistake of allowing immunity to be construed to mean impunity.”
The Minority which is led by Haruna Iddrisu replied their colleagues and chided them for breaking ranks and seeking to undermine the authority of the Speaker.
“The police attempted to arrest him on Sunday 31st October 2021 while he was worshiping in church. This was in spite of the fact that the police wrote to the Speaker on 27th October, 2021 and the Speaker replied and reiterated the fact that there is a procedure that is to be followed with respect to inviting a Member of Parliament to assist in investigations and until that procedure is followed , he as Speaker would not entertain their request. Criminal summons was subsequently issued against the MP with charges to appear before the court on 8th November 2021.
“The Majority Leadership is being mischievous and disingenuous by ignoring the fact that the Police refused to comply with the established protocols of dealing with matters affecting MPs by not, first of all, contacting the Speaker who would have then made the necessary arrangements for them to meet with the affected MP,” excerpts of the Minority MP read.
The move by the two caucuses represents a new dimension to the issue which has landed Sosu in court.
Following their refusal to arrest him, the police has officially taken legal action against Sosu and slapped on him charges of obstructing the highway and causing damage to public property.
He is due in court on November 8, 2021.
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