Parliament launches 457-page book on Legislative System of Ghana

Parliament Monday launched the "The Legislative System of Ghana", a well researched 457-page book with 16 chapters, written by Dr Ernest Darfour, a Senior Assistant Clerk of Parliament.

The book answers pertinent questions on how Parliament operates, how it transacts business, and the sitting procedures of the House, among other things.

Dr Darfour said he was inspired to author it to provide assessable literature on the works of the Legislature.

He said in 2006, when he joined the Parliamentary Service, it was a daunting task to find literature on how the Legislature worked.

Speaker Alban Bagbin, who wrote the forward to the book, described it as a pioneering masterpiece on the legislative system of the Fourth Republican Parliament of Ghana.

Mr Joseph Osei-Owusu, the First Deputy Speaker, who performed the launch, called on Members of Parliament (MPs) to utilise the learning opportunities the House provided to enhance their knowledge of the legislative process.

He said the Legislature, as a learning institution, was awash with rich experiences and called on the MPs to use those experiences of the staff to enrich their skills.

Mr Osei-Owusu also clarified that many countries practiced either the presidential or parliamentary system of governance, however, Ghana combined the two, known as the Hybrid.

“This unique system makes Ghana's democracy a special one, and that is what the book illuminates,” he said.

Dr Evans Aggrey Darkoh, the Chief Director of the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, who reviewed the book, said it gave the reader a panoramic overview of the Legislative system of Ghana.

He said the author of the book provided a context on how Parliament conducted its business and sketched the typical setting of the Legislature and the procedural imperatives that must be observed before business began.

Dr Benjamin Kumbuor, former Majority Leader and Minister of State, who also reviewed the book, described it as historical, which made a clear distinction between historical context and substantive contemporary issues of legislative work.

He described the title as significant because it captured a number of issues that needed to be understood.

The Majority and Minority Leaders were represented by Mr Vincent Ekow Assafua, MP for Old Tafo, and Mr James Klutse Avedzi, Deputy Minority Leader and MP for Ketu North, respectively, while the Clerk of Parliament, Mr Cyril Kwabena Nsiah, was also present to support the launch.

GNA