The flagbearer of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), Kofi Akpaloo, believes that the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, did nothing wrong by declaring four seats vacant in Parliament after the affected persons chose to seek re-election as Independent Parliamentary Candidates.
During an interview on Kingdom FM monitored by MyNewsGh.com, Kofi Akpaloo stated that the Speaker of Parliament, based on Article 97, declared the seats vacant; hence, there was nothing wrong with his declaration that generated tension.
“The Speaker of Parliament, within his power, declared four seats vacant based on the provision of Article 97 of the Constitution. The law says if a party brings you to Parliament, you must be with the party until your tenure is over. If you want to stay in Parliament as an independent candidate, it automatically exits you from the party,” he argued.
Kofi Akpaloo emphasized that the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, was only doing his job as the Speaker, adding that the Speaker did nothing wrong.
“Alban Bagbin hasn’t done anything wrong. He only did his job as Speaker. But the same law says in Article 99 that before a seat can be declared vacant, the High Court should be the only institution to declare it vacant,” he reiterated.