MPs clash with Speaker over Code of Conduct

Some Members of Parliament are on a collision course with Speaker Edward Doe Adjaho over his decision to form a committee to draft a code of conduct for the House.

The move to regulate the conduct of parliamentarians comes on the heels of alleged conflict of interest involving the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Kwaku Agyeman Manu.

The Speaker last week ordered an inquiry into the conduct of Mr. Agyeman Manu following his letter to local ICT firm, Rlg, asking for sponsorship for a trip.

The Speaker on Thursday took the issue a step further, constituting a committee to formulate a code of conduct to regulate the behavior of members of parliament.

Joy News Parliamentary correspondent, Elton Brobbey reports, the code of conduct will among others, reinforce privileges and state clear guidelines on how the public should relate to the MPs.

This decision, however, upset some of the MPs, led by member for Adansi Asokwa constituency of the Ashanti Region, Kwaku Tahir Hammond, who fiercely resisted the move.

“Look at us, we are not babies…Why should we now form an ad hoc committee to go out there to now propose regulations to bind us on how to speak outside? Is it suggested that we don’t know how to speak outside?” K.T Hammond charged.

His colleague for Sekondi, Papa Owusu Ankomah, saw nothing wrong with the formation of the committee to draft code of conduct for the House.

Papa Owusu Ankomah, who is Vice Chairperson for the committee disclosed to Evans Mensah on Newsnight that: "the issue of having a code of conduct the for House had been on the table for some time now" including his days as Majority Leader.

He said, however, it will be the decision of the House to either or not, make the code of conduct binding on the MPs.

Nonetheless, the Executive Director of the African Parliamentarians' Network Against Corruption, Daniel Batidam has welcome the development.

Mr. Batidam said the code of conduct is long overdue for Ghana’s Parliament, which has been in existence for over 20 years.

He expressed surprise that: “MPs who belong to the institution that makes laws for the nation, will complain about rules about their conduct”.