Haruna Iddrisu
The Minority has removed its former leader, Haruna Iddrisu, from his committee posts, in a sign of escalating tensions within the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).
In the name of re-composition, the NDC Tamale South MP was outed from key and influential committees such as the House Committee, Business Committee, Appointments Committee, Special Budget Committee, and Committee on Selection, and assigned to the Committee on Environment, Science, and Technology.
Despite his profession as a lawyer, Haruna was removed from the Judicial Committee and replaced with his successor, Dr. Ato Forson, an economist, raising the issue of bigotry in the NDC.
According to a report of the Committee of Selection on the re-composition of the committees, the opposition NDC made some changes to the membership of the Minority Caucus leadership at the start of this parliamentary meeting.
The changes necessitated the re-composition of some parliamentary committees in order to ensure the smooth operation of the House, the report said.
It added that the committee met and reconsidered the composition of the membership, taking into account the importance of their mandate and the leadership role required of the new leaders of the Minority Caucus in the committees.
The action follows Mr. Iddrisu’s infamous drama in the House on February 9, 2023, when he crossed the aisle to stake out a position on the right side of the chamber in NPP Majority territory to contribute to a Foreign Affairs Committee report.
While some MPs see the move as a normal reaction to the change in leadership, others believe it is retaliation for Haruna’s attempt to slap the NDC leadership in the face.
The re-composition was based on Standing Orders of Parliament, with the ratio 138:137 representing the numerical strength of the two caucuses, as well as House conventions and practices, the report noted.
Observations
The Committee observed that changes in Minority Caucus leadership have resulted in gaps in the composition of the membership and the effective functioning of a number of House Committees.
The Committee also noted that the changes have impacted the Committee of Selection, which is charged with preparing and reporting on lists of Chairmen, Vice-Chairmen, Ranking Members, and Deputy Ranking Members, as appropriate, and members to compose the House committees, as well as effecting changes in the membership of any committee in accordance with Standing Orders 151, 152, and 193.
In order to ensure the smooth operation of the House, and in accordance with Order 193, the Committee resolved and recomposed the membership of the Committee of Selection, Business Committee, Appointments Committee, House Committee, Standing Orders Committee, Committee on Privileges, Special Budget Committee, Judiciary Committee, and Committee on Environment, Science, and Technology.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House