ECOWAS Must take Steps to Elect Permanent MPs- Hon Bedzrah
A member of Ghana’s delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament, Hon Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah has noted that electing permanent lawmakers to the sub regional Parliament is achievable with the needed political will.
According to him, electing permanent MPs to the ECOWAS Parliament would go a long to strengthen the policy of the Sub-region for development.
The lifespan of the current 5th Parliament comes to an end early next year for new ones into the 6th parliament.
He said the flagship programme of vision by the Speaker, Rt. Hon Dr. Sidie Mohammed Tunis are laudable positive policies, but needed political will for implementation.
Hon Bedzrah the Ad Hoc Committee set up to draw the road map have presented their their report at the first 2023 Extra Ordinary meeting of the Parliament held in Guinea Bissau.
“One of the things we agreed with was that every country should come out with its modalities of electing MPs to the 6th parliament, since ECOWAS commission would not want to spend.
“Some of us were advocating that if we have Ghana parliament for example and the national parliament decided that we would constitute ourselves in a national electoral college for instant, if I want to become a member of the Community Parliament and get elected, I have to resign from the National Parliament to join the ECOWAS Parliament.
“For me to have permanency and is workable, only that Ghana would have to spend money to do what we call a bye-election to elect a new person to represent my constituency”
He cited the EU Parliament as qn instance of reference of which ECOWAS could learn lessons.
As to whether as a sub-region have the political will beyond rhetoric the lawmaker said it should be put on record that the 6th Parliament lawmakers would be elected and not nominated and when that happens he would not serve in the next 9th Ghanaian Parliament
“Again, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament should be prepared and accept that there is the need for funds to be made available to take care of us – our condition of service, we are now going to serve in the Community Parliament”, he stated.
Hon. Bedzrah, revealed that the major problem now is preparation to get MPs and does not think the logistics are ready to take people on board with this new ideas; there are a lot of things to be done in the ECOWAS Parliament.
“If we are really talking about integration, look – the Community Parliament must start working now, what we are doing there is just a talk shop like you said, we are just joking if really we want to see ECOWAS of the people, Parliament must work; if we would be able to achieve that, we can achieve all other things. It’s all about the political will; and that would depend on our Heads of States and Government”.
And if all of us agree that this must happen, it would happen otherwise we should stop going to the Parliament and the political will depends on us.
If the ECOWA citizens are pushing for it hard enough, we also have to do our bit of educating people about ECOWAS in general, “we have not done that when people hear of it they only know of a fifteen member state; what goes into it we do not know”.
Three member states currently are under military rule all because proper democratic governance was not obeyed; in the case of Guinea Conakry when the former president decided to extend his tenure, the Authority of Heads of States and Government did not do anything about it.
And Guinea Bissau to the extent that the President has suspended the parliament, they are going to organise another election again, but the MPs from that Country say, “that is what their constitution says, but they do not have a parliament.
“At our Extra Ordinary meeting some of us ask why are we here, they do not have a Parliament; someone comes to seat and says he is the Speaker of parliament. Speaker for which parliament? The building is just there and is doing nothing” and added that West Africa has a problem”.
About Author
