Minority walks out over Deputy Speaker’s SIM re-registration ruling
Minority Members of Parliament on Wednesday walked out of the Chamber in protest over what they described as the First Deputy Speaker Bernard Ahiafor’s repeated use of the Standing Orders to obstruct the caucus and weaken Parliament’s oversight responsibilities.
The protest was triggered after the Deputy Speaker refused to allow supplementary questions from Minority MPs directed at the Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, regarding the government’s proposed SIM re-registration exercise.
Ahiafor ruled that the questions did not comply with the Standing Orders of Parliament.
Speaking to journalists after the walkout, Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin accused the First Deputy Speaker of consistently relying on procedural rules to prevent Minority MPs, particularly backbenchers, from holding the government accountable.
He claimed the Deputy Speaker had adopted a pattern of using the rules to curtail parliamentary scrutiny.
According to Afenyo-Markin, backbench members of the Minority were frequently prevented from fully participating whenever they sought to question government officials.
He argued that the supplementary questions on the planned SIM re-registration exercise were intended to seek clarification on matters of public interest, including the cost and implementation of the policy.
Afenyo-Markin questioned the need for another SIM registration exercise, especially after the minister had indicated that subscribers would not bear any cost.
He said Parliament was entitled to know the financial implications of the exercise, the number of people found to have registered SIM cards using unverifiable identities, and the procurement processes that would govern the implementation of the policy.
The Minority Leader further contended that the Deputy Speaker had misapplied the Standing Orders, insisting that Rule 89(1) permits supplementary questions based on a minister’s response when clarification is required.
He maintained that the proposed questions fell squarely within the provisions of the rules because they related directly to a government policy and sought further explanation of the minister’s answers.
Afenyo-Markin said the walkout was meant to express the Minority’s dissatisfaction with the Deputy Speaker’s handling of proceedings and what it viewed as an attempt to limit effective parliamentary oversight.
He, however, clarified that the Minority’s protest was limited to the issue at hand and confirmed that members of the caucus would return to the Chamber to continue participating in the rest of Parliament’s business.
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