MPs should seek crystallization of ideas from their constituents before assenting to parliamentary bills, legislations, and laws

To truncate the incessant ruckus that has been taking the gallery of our parliamentary proceedings into international ridicule, issues on the floor of parliament should be given ample time for the honorable members of the August House to solicit divergent opinions from their constituents before the final delivery on their part.

As much as Article 93, clause (2), of the Constitution clearly states that the legislative power of Ghana shall be vested in Parliament and exercised in accordance with the Constitution of Ghana, the constituents within the constituency where the legislative member represents should be an instrument of consideration.

Logically, the opinion and locus of a member of parliament should reflect the collective position of their constituency.

In most cases, the position of a member of parliament on an issue on the floor of the house is inconsistent with the position of his constituents. Allegedly, such positions are compromised and backed by some invisible powers in the hierarchy.

Just to name a few, Ghana’s position on the LGTBQ has become dicey, cagy, and controversial for the members to boldly concur. The recent discovery of lithium, the IMF deal, approvals of government loans for the running of the country, and other major parliamentary businesses keep suffering from political summersault.

Retrospectively, a countless number of parliamentary approvals, according to public opinion, lacked transparency, diligent consultation, negligible national interest, and acute stakeholder consultations.

To reiterate Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address on November 19, 1863, he said, Democracy is a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

By extension, every country that subscribes to democracy should assent to Abraham Lincoln’s famous speech.

Finally, if indeed governance is a sheer collective responsibility, then every Ghanaian, through local governance levels and town hall meetings, should be an integral part of our parliamentary businesses.