Kobina Tahir (KT) Hammond, has stated that it is impossible for the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, to remain neutral when moderating proceedings of the House.
According to the MP for the Adansi-Asokwa Constituency, the posture of the Speaker of the 8th Parliament is not surprising especially looking at where he is coming from.
Speaking to JoyNews on Thursday, December 23, K.T. Hammond stated, the Speaker owes his allegiance to the opposition National Democratic Congress. A relationship, he [KT Hammond] believes impairs his fairness in the assessment of issues placed before the House.
He explained, “You see, let’s again be realistic. Alban Bagbin was always NDC. I don’t think he was ever going to change to be NPP. It’s not possible. And on the leopard and skin, and those things you know how it is. So Alban Bagbin was always NDC, he was running for their presidency. And we didn’t vote for him. We NPP didn’t vote for him. Except of course whatever happened, he won it.”
“So, the whole caucus of NDC, they voted for him. His spirit, his blood, his everything, he’s still NDC. There’s no doubt about that. You can’t blame him. Let’s be realistic politically. He’s sitting there, and having been elected as a Speaker, he’s supposed to be neutral but is it possible? That’s the difficulty he has,” K. T. Hammond stressed.
The MP’s comment comes after the Speaker of Parliament was absent during one of the sittings on Monday, which resulted in fisticuffs amongst the MPs.
The Minority Chief Whip, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, had earlier explained, the Speaker’s absence could have been due to the need for him to take his medications.
But the Majority alleged that the Speaker’s absence was part of a premeditated scheme to hamper discussions on the e-levy Bill.
Reiterating this belief, K. T. Hammond said, the Speaker’s absence was deliberate, as he sought to put government business in jeopardy.
