The Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has said the role of MPs goes beyond making laws and, therefore, has called on members of the legislature to be more versatile in meeting the needs of their constituents.

The MP was speaking on Class91.3FM’s Executive Breakfast Show (EBS) on Tuesday, 15 December 2020.

In his view, MPs, according to the 1992 Constitution, are not just lawmakers but development agents, too.

He argued that the legal construction in Ghana had it in mind for MPs to also take an interest in development and not just lawmaking, thus, the reason for a Common Fund for MPs.

He told show host Abdul Karim Ibrahim that: “I think that the framers of our Constitution wanted for us to also take an interest in development, that is why Members of Parliament have a share of the Common Fund and, so, we call it the MPs’ Common Fund.

“If it is that we were meant to be just lawmakers and strictly supposed to focus on law-making, I do not think that there’ll have been a provision in our Constitution, in our laws, for the MPs to have a share. The entire Common Fund will have just been allocated to the MMDCEs so that they will be responsible for development but to the extent that there’s a portion, though meagre, though very limited, if you’re creative, you can use that wisely. I use mine largely for scholarships. They’ll tell you that 80 per cent of my Common Fund goes into scholarships”.

According to Mr Ablakwa, an MP, who is interested in the development of his constituency, will take lobbying seriously, emphasising that by virtue of the legal construct stipulated in the Constitution, “We are being called upon to also pay particular attention to the development of our constituencies. If you’re a legislator who is also interested in the development of your constituency, you’ll take lobbying seriously.”

The North Tongu MP noted that constituents want MPs to be involved in the development of their welfare, especially, as they promise to fix their problems during campaign periods while canvassing for their votes.

“You need to have that kind of mindset to make you more versatile. So, I think that those who suffer is because they’re not able to really appreciate. I hear people say that oh no the MPs job is not to bother about development, is not to, yes but go back into their campaigns, how do they campaign. When they go to a community, a place that they need roads, that they need water or the people are saying; no-light no-vote, they tell them; 'oh, when I come, I’ll go and lobby, I’ll go and speak for you to be fixed, I’ll even get you jobs and all.' So, when they’re campaigning, they’re very on hinge. They’re very frontal in speaking to, the real needs, the felt-needs of the people. However, when they come into office, they begin to make excuses.

"So I think the time has come that we need to align, whether we like it or not, the mindset of our people on the ground is that the MP should help, the expectation is that you should be involved in the development in their welfare. You should seek their progress. It shouldn’t just be about making the laws, yes, go make the laws but really what is the law to me if I’m hungry, what is the law to me if I’m living in abject poverty, if I’m living in deprivation, if I’m unemployed and all of that? Make sure you carry out your legislative work but to the extent that we have the MPs common fund though very small.”

Mr Ablakwa also indicated that if lawmaking and being development oriented must be decoupled, then there must be an amendment of the constitution but until then, the MP has a duty to be versatile and creative in order to reach out to the developmental needs of constituents.

“Because if not, then I’ll argue if we have come to a certain juncture where we think that: 'Look, all of this business of lobbying, of being development-oriented, we don’t want it, our MPs should only be lawmakers, then let us amend the Constitution, let’s take away the MPs' Common Fund and MPs should stop campaigning and talking about the needs of the people and let's see if that will work and let’s see how that pans out.

“But to the extent that you have the current legal construct, which allows you to also have a share of the Common Fund, that itself should tell all of us, that Members of Parliament should be more creative and should a bit more versatile in reaching out beyond just the role of lawmaking."