Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has again asked Members of Parliament (MPs) to subject themselves to the coronavirus (COVID-19) test as part of measures to contain the spread of the virus.
According to him, a number of MPs have not availed themselves for the testing of the COVID-19, indicating that “the COVID-19 test is still ongoing.”
“We arranged with the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) to use three days. The three days are over, but I am reliably informed that a number of our members have not yet taken the opportunity to either do the screening or to undergo the COVID-19 test,” he stated in Parliament yesterday.
“Honourable members, I will humbly urge that you all take this opportunity seriously and go through it by the end of today,” Speaker Bagbin directed, and added that the team was still at the Parliament Medical Centre waiting for members to do so.
It was the second time the Speaker of Parliament directed MPs to subject themselves to testing of COVID-19 in the face of an increasing number of cases in the country.
Last Friday, the Speaker said all MPs were required to undergo the COVID-19 test, while announcing that the House, beginning from this week, would hold virtual sittings as part of the arrangement.
According to him, one-third of the members of the House will, however, be required to be present in the chamber to carry on with the business of the House, while the rest will be in offices to observe and take part in proceedings.
He said all MPs would be recalled to the House when debates crop up, indicating that “because of the COVID, we will need one-third of members on the floor.”
“The rest will have to do virtual parliament, you will have to be in your offices to observe proceedings and as and when necessary, appear to contribute,” Speaker Bagbin noted.
He revealed that the House was also considering holding sittings in the tent erected at the forecourt from where the President and his vice were sworn in to pave the way for fumigation exercise in the chamber and offices of Parliament.
He called on all MPs to cooperate with the Parliamentary Service to ensure a successful exercise.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House