The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has declared that the doors of the parliamentary chamber will be locked at 10 a.m. each sitting day, effective from the next meeting in January.
This decision is part of measures to address the issue of late attendance to parliamentary sessions.
“Honourable Members, those who arrive late will be locked out until the Speaker decides to open the doors again. At 10:00 a.m., the doors will be locked.
The Speaker will be in, and it will take some time before the doors will be opened. Not that they will not be opened but it will take some time,” Speaker Bagbin announced.
The Speaker suggested that if members find it challenging to comply with the new schedule, an alternative could be to start sitting in the afternoon, either from 14:00 hours or 16:00 hours, allowing committees to hold meetings in the morning and present reports in the afternoon.
In response to the proposal, Speaker Bagbin urged both the Majority and Minority Caucuses to meet and discuss the recommendation.
If an agreement is not reached, the Speaker will proceed with locking the doors to the chamber starting from the next meeting in January.
