The Minority in Parliament has jumped to the defence of Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin over his absence from the chamber during the consideration of the controversial E-Levy.
The majority through its deputy leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin accused the speaker of deliberately abandoning parliament to aid the agenda of the minority in frustrating government business.
But addressing the media deputy minority leader James Klutse Avedzi explained the speaker had to leave the chamber on health grounds.
According to him, the deliberate delay from the majority in ensuring the production of the report of the finance committee on E-Levy held up the speaker in the chamber for too long attending to peripheral matters.
The move the Ketu North MP argued was to allow the majority side to marshal their numbers. The development according to Avedzi compelled the speaker to leave given advice from his doctors not to sit for too long and not as a result of claims of the majority.
“He [Afenyo Markin] said Bagbin’s absence was a deliberate act to frustrate government business. That is a complete lie. It is not true. We all know Bagbin just returned from Dubai where he went for medical treatment, and he must obey the instructions of his doctors,” Mr. Avedzi said.
Touching on the absence of Mr. Bagbin on Tuesday, Avedzi explained the speaker was on his way to parliament when the house rose sine die.
He disclosed that the speaker asked for sitting to be delayed but the house explained proceedings had to go on given the fact that the E-Levy had been suspended.
