MPs need good facts to make good laws – Kyei Mensah Bonsu
Mr Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu, Minority Leader in Parliament has said that if members were equipped with accurate facts on bills and draft policies before the House, it would certainly inure to the benefit of the citizenry.
He said this was because the legislature if furnished with true facts would make good laws; “it goes without saying that bad laws ensuing from bad facts available to the lawmakers have dire consequences.”
Mr Mensah Bonsu was speaking at the second Parliamentary Platform meeting between Parliament and development partners over the weekend in Accra .
Topics discussed included; recent rebasing of Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and its implication on macro-economic and fiscal management and other sectors of the economy particularly the oil find.
Other topics related to macro-economic management and how to appropriately position Parliament to effectively play its oversight role.
Mr Mensah Bonsu noted that there was need for public education on how the Ghana Statistical Service arrived at Ghana’s attainment of middle income status especially on the methodology, justification, and intricacies related to the rebasing exercise.
He said the platform would offer the needed impetus for information sharing that seems to be eluding MPs and development partners in the discharge of their duties.
Mr Cletus Apul Avoka, Majority Leader, said the topics selected were most appropriate given that Parliament was still considering the budget and the Petroleum Revenue Management bill.
He said issues discussed at the meeting would no doubt inform discussions on the floor on the two items.
The platform was launched on May 26 2010 by the Speaker under the theme: “Consolidating Parliamentary Democracy through Partnership.”
It has the objective to strengthen parliamentary governance, create a forum for development partners and Parliament to engage each other and to share information on development policy issues.
It is also to harmonise support from development partners for capacity building of Parliament for its legislative, oversight and representational roles as well as sharing information on the preparatory and implementation of the new 2011 to 2015 strategic plan of Parliament with links to the proposed medium term development framework and other national initiatives.
Source: GNA