Debate on censure to remove Finance Minister Ofori-Atta begins Thursday
Parliament will on Thursday, November 10, 2022, begin the debate on the motion of censure filed by the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, for the removal of the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta.
Presenting the Business Statement for the week on the floor of Parliament last Friday, the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, said the debate on whether the Minister of Finance should go or not remained a key feature for the week.
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Motion of Censure
The motion of censure was filed last week Monday by the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, for the removal of the Finance Minister.
The motion is embedded with a seven-point allegation as grounds for the removal of the minister.
Among the seven-point allegations embedded in the motion are a despicable conflict of interest ensuring that the minister directly benefits from Ghana's economic woes as his companies receive commissions and other unethical contractual advantage, particularly from Ghana's debt overhang.
In addition, the motion alleged an unconstitutional withdrawal from the Consolidated Fund in blatant contravention of Article 178 of the 1992 Constitution supposedly for the construction of the National Cathedral.
Moreover, illegal payment of oil revenue into offshore accounts in flagrant violation of Article 176 of the1992 Constitution.
Majority’s objection
Since the motion was filed, the Majority in Parliament has raised a preliminary objection on the motion of censure, saying the full facts needed to be made available to the minister in order not to spring surprises on him.
The Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Kwamina Afenyo-Markin, who raised the objection, said the manner in which the motion was crafted was unfair to Mr Ofori-Atta, insisting that the full facts needed to be made available to him in order for him to properly appreciate the facts and respond appropriately.
Article 82
According to Article 82 of the 1992 Constitution, Parliament may, by are solution supported by the votes of not less than two-thirds of all the members of Parliament, pass a vote of censure on a Minister of State.
A motion for the resolution referred to in clause (1) of this article shall not be moved in Parliament unless-seven days' notice has been given of the motion; and the notice for the motion has been signed by not less than one-third of all the members of Parliament.
The motion shall be debated in Parliament within 14 days after the receipt by the Speaker of the notice for the motion.
Questions
Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said a total of seven Ministers of State are expected to appear before the House in the course of the week to respond to 46 questions.
They are made up of seven urgent and 72 oral questions.