IT IS THREE DECADES SINCE
Parliamentary democracy was given a fourth birth in this sovereign country, and Ghanaians should be proud of this legacy of deliberative governance. While commending the successive Parliaments of the Fourth Republic and the parliamentary leadership as a whole for taking our Legislature this far, it is only appropriate to indicate that there is so much room for improving upon the status quo; some sober reflection on the journey so far might help the Institution to improve the pace at which it is representing and defending Ghanaian citizens.
REPRESENTATION
The area of deepening representation is one on which such a reflection would be most beneficial. Fortunately, it is one area that the Speaker of the House, Rt Hon. Alban S. K. Bagbin, has indicated his office places huge premium on. Speaking at the Speaker’s Breakfast Forum in Kumasi on the November 21, 2021, Mr Bagbin indicated, among others, that the Eighth Parliament under his leadership prioritises the strengthening of its representational role. This declaration is very much in line with the modern trend in governance, where premium is placed on participatory rather than representative governance. In this respect, Mehmet Zahid Sobachi (2012) writes that the role of citizens in a democracy is not exhausted by the act of electing a government; they need to be continually engaged by government if it (the government) is to remain in touch with the people and their needs.
To make relevant progress in deepening representation, there is definitely the need to step up engagement with citizens. Without prejudice to Mr Bagbin’s declaration, it should be placed on record that Parliament had been in touch with Ghanaians in so many ways. There have been various forums such as the Speaker’s Breakfast meetings, road shows and town hall meetings by various parliamentary committees. There are also in place students’ parliaments, and pupils and students visit the House regularly to observe proceedings. The live webcast of proceedings, and the opportunity it gives citizens to make comments on the performance of their representative institution and its members is probably the most prominent signpost on the Legislature’s engagement with Ghanaians. It is this writer’s view that there is room for improving upon every aspect of such public engagement activities.
It is commendable therefore that Mr Bagbin recognises this need for the Legislature and its honourable members to deepen engagement with Ghanaians and has been putting measures in place to support the process. In recent times, the creation of a Department responsible for Public Engagement and the appointment of a director to spearhead the process is an indication of a desire to move the engagement process from the piecemeal approach of the past to giving the endeavour a formal approach. This will not only make many Ghanaians more interested participants in the affairs of their elected representatives, but also make the Legislature more relevant to the needs of Ghanaian citizens. The proposed citizens’ bureau when put in place will further broaden the parliament – citizen engagement process.
It is significant that Mr Speaker’s efforts are in tune with the emphasis globally on improving parliament – citizen engagement. To this end, the Inter – parliamentary Union (IPU) published the Global Parliamentary Report 2022 whose focuses is entirely on improving parliament – citizen engagement. The profound outreach process in our Parliament would benefit immensely from the best practices proposed in this Report The Report proposes improved dissemination of information among citizens; improved exchange of communication between parliament the same citizens and the enhancement of educational activities among school children and the general public. The Report also proposes broader consultations with relevant stakeholders in the consideration of draft legislation and getting the public to participate actively in the consideration of draft legislation. As outlined in this Report, efforts aimed at deepening the engagement process should start from improving information circulation and communication with citizens.
IMPROVED DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION
As already mentioned, the Parliament of Ghana has not lagged behind with the most basic form of engagement, which is disseminating information among Ghanaian citizens. In particular, the institution continually uses online tools to inform Ghanaian citizens of its activities. The institution has for several years maintained an active website that regularly publishes information on its activities. It also maintains active social media platforms. Created in January 2018, Parliament’s Facebook page (as at June 6th 2023) had 243, 000 followers, representing 93 per cent of Parliament’s social media audiences, as against 4, 707 for Twitter subscribers, who represent only 1.8 per cent of the total, and 13 ,500 followers on Youtube, who also represent only 5.1 per cent of the total . Secondly, the Facebook handle is used to transmit live videos of daily proceedings of the House which are created on Youtube.
In spite of the live broadcast and regular updates that these online media platforms provide on governmental and other issues of public interest, information on the Legislature’s own businesses are not forthcoming. The daily proceedings of the House are recorded in two documents which are supposed to be published as soon as possible after the House adjourns. They are the Votes and Proceedings and the Official Report, otherwise known as the Hansard. Ghanaians will no doubt want to see the two documents appear more often on Parliament’s website.
BY HAROLD WILSON HUBERT
