Speaker snubs Majority Leader in heated exchange over Criminal Offences (Amendment) Bill

An intense exchange unfolded in Ghana’s parliament when the Speaker, Alban Bagbin, snubbed the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, during discussions on the Criminal Offences (Amendment) Bill, a video report by CitiNews has said.

In the video, tensions escalated as the Majority Leader stood for a while without acknowledgment from the Speaker.

Expressing frustration, Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu exclaimed, “You don’t even know what I am going to say.”

The Speaker, unmoved, responded, “Majority Leader, you are not a first timer in this house.”

The Majority Leader acknowledged, saying, “I know,” to which the Speaker added, “I am not the first Speaker, please resume your seat.”

Despite the Majority Leader’s apparent anger and continued ranting, the Speaker proceeded with the correction of the previous day’s votes and proceedings, leaving the atmosphere charged with tension.

Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu questioned the unfolding dynamics in the House, asking, “What is this that we are seeing in Ghana’s parliament?”

The heated exchange occurred shortly after Speaker Bagbin criticized President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s decision to reject the Criminal Offences Amendment Bill and the Ghana Armed Forces Amendment Bill.

Bagbin accused the president of being “tragically wrong” and “ill-informed,” contending that Akufo-Addo’s rationale, citing financial implications and potential breaches of Article 108 of the constitution, was misguided.