With barely 24 hours to the dissolution of the 6th Parliament, President John Mahama has charged the House to consider passing the Right to Information Bill (RTI).
The Bill has been before parliament for over 10 years, but it is yet to be passed into law.
However, the Sixth Parliament of the Fourth Republic, will end midnight on Friday, giving way for the seventh parliament to be inaugurated on January 7.
But President John Mahama while delivering his State of the Nation Address in Parliament today, [Thursday], said public and civil society organizations are disappointed over his government and Parliament’s inability to pass the Bill into law.
“I must however say that, the public and Civil Society Organisations are disappointed in our inability to pass the Right to Information Bill and are still hopeful that before this Parliament is dissolved at midnight on the 6th of January, a consensus can be found to pass this Bill into law,” he expressed.
But the Minority Speaker of Parliament, who will soon lead the NPP majority side, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu said the House in its current state may not be able to pass the Bill.
“I’m still wondering whether in the dying embers of this extra time, this House may still find space and time to work on the Right to Information Bill. We all recognize that it is a very important Bill, but I do not think that it will do us any good…we all recognize the significance of this Bill…nobody should have any emotions about that [but] we will pursue what is right.”
Minority delaying passage of RTI bill
The Majority in Parliament recently accused the Minority of not showing ample commitment regarding the passage of the Right to Information Bill.
According to the majority, many MPs on the minority side leave the chamber in their numbers when the matter comes up, denying the house the needed quorum to transact business on the important Bill.
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