Speaker Bagbin does not have any right to suspend legislators—Habib Iddrisu

Deputy Minority Chief Whip Habib Iddrisu has given a strong indication that regardless of the fact that the Speaker of Parliament heads the august house, he does not have the power to suspend Members of Parliament.

According to him, the Speaker’s posture and procedure in handling the issue is wrong in law.

He explained while speaking on Accra-based Joy News that their standing orders give how members are supposed to be suspended, and the speaker did not follow what the standing orders say.

“More to the point, the speaker as the head of the institution does not have that power to suspend members of parliament as per the standing orders we have. If you go and check the procedure on how members are supposed to be suspended and what he has done, it is too harsh. Even our standing orders have given how members are supposed to be suspended,” he told Joy News.

Background

Four Members of Parliament have been suspended from parliamentary sittings for two weeks following their roles in the chaotic scenes that erupted during the Appointments Committee’s vetting session on Thursday.

Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, announced the disciplinary action on the floor of the House on Friday, January 31, 2025.

The affected MPs are Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, Alhassan Tampuli, and Jerry Ahmed Shaib.

Their suspension comes after heated clashes between the Majority and Minority caucuses, which disrupted proceedings and led to a breakdown of order.

The decision by Speaker Bagbin signals Parliament’s resolve to uphold discipline and ensure decorum in legislative proceedings.

But speaking on Accra-based Joy News, Habib Iddrisu indicated that the speaker had no right to suspend the four members of parliament.

The post Speaker Bagbin does not have any right to suspend legislators—Habib Iddrisu appeared first on MyNewsGh.