Speaker of Parliament Alban S.K. Bagbin, has expressed Ghana’s readiness to share her democratic experiences with Mali as the West African neighbour attempts a return to democratic dispensation.
According to him, the final decision for democratic rule is, however, the sole preserve of the Malian people but assured that Ghana is ready to provide every assistance on this venture.
He pledged the Parliament of Ghana will offer all the necessary support to ECOWAS Chairman, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, as he works with the Malian leadership to revert the country to democratic rule.
Speaker Bagbin made the pledge when the Deputy Speaker of the Mali National Assembly, Mr Assarid Ag Imbarcaouan, paid a courtesy call on him last Friday.
The Malian envoy was in the country to invite the Speaker and President Akufo-Addo to the opening of the Ordinary Session of the National Transitional Council on 5th April 2021.
Speaker Bagbin stated that Ghana shares the concerns of Mali, especially in the fight against terrorism and extremism and stressed the need for collaboration along with other affected states to halt the phenomenon.
“Ghana is very concerned and therefore we will come and share our experiences not because we know more than you but because by the nature of human beings, familiarity raises contempt.
“People are more ready to listen to a stranger and therefore Ghana will be in Mali as an outsider to share some of the experiences that you are sharing with them but they are not listening”, he added.
The Speaker expressed worry that insurrections have taken over Sudan, Libya, Niger, Mali and gradually moving south from the Sahel Region and threatening Ghana.
The need to help stabilize Mali, he said, is therefore a mutual concern for the entire region and stressed Ghana is ready to offer its support to stem the tide.
Mr Assarid Ag Imbarcaouan in his remarks, noted that nobody can divide Ghana and Mali because of their historical antecedents and cited the similarity in their national flags as an example.
“We are brothers and there has never been a problem between Ghana and Mali. We are therefore ready to do everything possible to restore democracy in Mali, looking at the concerns you have expressed about our country.
“At a point in time Ghana and Mali were the beacon of democracy in Africa and in our inter-Parliamentary meetings Ghana and Mali have been used as the example.
“But Mali faltered due to bad governance and all these democratic institutions were destroyed and are no more,” Mr Assarid Ag Imbarcaouan added.
Mali, he said, is ready to retrace its steps to re-establish democratic rule and to restore its democratic credentials in the world.
Mr Assarid Ag Imbarcaouan warned that terrorism is real and therefore the need for states’ collaboration to halt the expansion of violence in the sub-region.
Minority leader Haruna Iddrisu urged Mali to take urgent steps for democratic reforms and work towards a new Constitution and assured Ghana’s Parliament is ready to provide assistance in the drafting of a new Constitution.
He noted that every country has a President but stressed only democracy has a Parliament and urged Mali to work towards that.
Ghana, he said, went through many coups d’état before eventually adopting and practicing democratic governance and assured the country is ready to share that experience to guide her West African neighbour.
