President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has promised to work with the new Speaker of Parliament, Mr Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, of the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), to advance the peace, progress and prosperity of the Ghanaians.
In his inaugural address shortly after taking the oath of office yesterday for his second term in office, President Akufo-Addo congratulated Mr Bagbin, who had been his colleague lawmaker for years, on his elevation to the position of Speaker.
“I must, at the outset, express my warm congratulations to my good friend and colleague of many years in this House, the Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, on his assumption of office as the Speaker of the Eighth Parliament of the 4th Republic.
“Nearly three decades of devoted service to Parliament by you has culminated in this moment, which has seen your elevation to the third great office of state of our nation.
“Together, you and I will be chartering new territory in the governance and politics of the 4th Republic, for this is the first time in the life of this Republic that a President from one party will be obliged, by the exigencies of the moment and the will of the people, to work, in all sincerity and co-operation, with a Speaker of Parliament from another party,” he stated.
President Akufo-Addo expressed confidence that “both of us will be guided in our relationship by the supreme interest of our people in ensuring good governance in the ordering of the affairs of state.”
“I want to assure you of my wholehearted determination to work with you to advance the peace, progress and prosperity of the Ghanaian people. Once again, many congratulations to you and the re-elected and new Members of Parliament,” the President added.
Mr Bagbin was elected the Speaker of the Eighth Parliament of the Fourth Republic after a chaotic voting exercise in the chamber of parliament in the early hours of yesterday.
He was elected over the New Patriotic Party’s nominee, Prof Mike Oquaye, who had served as Speaker of the Seventh Parliament.
Chief Justice Anin Yeboah administered the oath of allegiance and the speaker’s oath to Mr Bagbin.
He is a member of the NDC and has been the MP for Nadowli Kaleo in the Upper West region in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th parliaments of the 4th republic of Ghana.
