Day of joy for Kings Star Academy

The dream of the schoolchildren of Kings Star Academy in Bunkpurugu came true when the mock parliament they organised in school gave them the opportunity to travel from Bunkpurugu to witness proceedings at the Parliament House.

During their visit, the students were given an exclusive tour of the Parliament Building and were guided by several members of parliament (MPs).
The students impressed the members of parliament with their knowledge and enthusiasm for parliamentary sessions. 
The visit became possible after a video of the students went viral on social media for mocking parliamentary proceedings which caught the attention of the MP for the area, Abed-Nego Azumah, and the national executive committee (NEC) member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Ms Cecilia Asaga.
Consequently, Ms Asaga urged the MPs to establish mentorship programmes for the youth in their respective constituencies. “This would help instil leadership skills in the youth at an early age and ensure that they retained the skills as they mature,” she noted.
Ms Asaga made these remarks at an educational session hosted by the public engagement department of Parliament last Wednesday at the Justice D.F. Annan auditorium for some students from the Bunkpurugu Constituency in the North East Region.
The students were educated on parliamentary sessions after Mr Azumah and Ms Asaga lobbied the office of the Speaker of Parliament and collaborated with the Director of Public Engagement of Parliament, Afia Tenge, to have the students visit Parliament and observe parliamentary proceedings. 
She, the MP, and the Public Engagement Department of Parliament extended a special invitation to the students to have a firsthand experience of the inner workings of the nation's legislative body. 
In an interview with Ms Asaga, she said the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, was also impressed by the parliamentary decorum and insightful arguments displayed by the young students in the video, hence he decided to grant them an audience.
She explained the need for teachers to observe their students and pupils with a critical eye to identify their leadership abilities and talents and develop them into future leaders. 
"I was inspired and awestruck by the performance of these young people. So, facilitating their travel from the north to Parliament House to observe proceedings live was intended to encourage them to work hard and become what they demonstrated in the video," she said. 
Ms Asaga also praised the teacher who organised the practice and rehearsal sessions for the students.
She stated that the video of the children demonstrated that when given the chance, they could become better MPs in the future because formerly, MPs only represented their constituents and reported back to them on the happenings and proceedings in Parliament, which was a one-sided affair.

However, now, the work of a parliamentarian is an exchange of information in which they report to their constituents and also receive feedback from them.  
Speaking to some of the students, they said the visit was an inspiring experience for them and expressed their gratitude to the coordinator of the forum, Ms Asaga, and their MP for making it possible for them to observe the real-life parliamentary proceedings.