Parliament without the Minority has approved the government’s 2022 Budget Statement and Economic Policy, presented to the House by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, on November 17, 2021.
Although the budget was rejected by the House last Friday by the Minority, the Majority Caucus overturned the decision today, Tuesday, November 30, 2021, and approved the policy document.
The members on the Minority side were absent during the sitting today.
The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei Owusu, who chaired the sitting, rubbished the purported rejection of the budget.
He argued that the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, erred in overseeing the exercise since there was no clear majority in the House during the proceedings last Friday.
Rejection
The 8th Parliament has made history in the 4th Republic by becoming the first Parliament to reject a Budget Statement and Economic Policy document.
On the evening of Friday, November 26, 2021, a one-sided Parliament rejected the 2022 budget statement presented by Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, for consideration and approval.
Before voting, MPs on the Majority side of Parliament staged a walkout following a directive by the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, for non-MPs to vacate the Chamber.
Parliament had rejected a request by the Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta to engage leadership of the House on some aspect of the budget by a voice vote.
This ruling was challenged by Deputy Majority Chief Whip, Alexander Afenyo Markin, who called for a ‘voice division’ to allow for the voting to be redone.