Former Kumbungu MP, Ras Mubarak, has slammed a petition introduced by former Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu, which seeks to remove four MPs contesting the December 2024 elections as independent candidates.
According to him, the move is a distraction from urgent national matters and urged the need for Parliament to focus on holding the Electoral Commission (EC) accountable ahead of the upcoming elections.
In a strongly worded article released on Tuesday, October 17, 2024, the former NDC MP stressed that the primary focus of the Minority should be ensuring that the EC delivers a free and fair election. He voiced concerns about the EC’s past conduct, warning that its impartiality remains in question.
“With less than two months to the election, we should be focusing on vital issues like reigning in the EC, not wasting time on an irrelevant motion,” Mubarak wrote. He argued that the removal of independent MPs would have minimal impact on the election’s outcome, and that the political energy expended on this issue could be better used to ensure the EC’s accountability.
Mubarak also took the opportunity to criticize Haruna Iddrisu’s leadership record, referencing his inaction in 2022 when NPP MPs including Sarah Adwoa Safo and Kennedy Agyapong were accused of violating constitutional provisions by their extended absence from Parliament. He noted that it was his own petition that eventually brought the issue before Parliament, while the Minority downplayed it.
He further highlighted critical issues affecting the country, such as rising road accidents, environmental degradation, and economic challenges, as matters that should take precedence over the motion. Mubarak argued that the EC’s “intransigent” posture and the government’s mismanagement posed a far greater threat to Ghana’s future than the actions of independent MPs.
As the December elections approach, Mubarak called on the NDC and the Minority to remain focused on pressing issues like electoral transparency and accountability. He urged Parliament to use its powers to hold the EC in check, instead of engaging in what he described as “injury time gymnastics.”
“With less than three months left in the life of this Parliament, there’s little or no political benefit in removing the independent MPs,” Mubarak concluded.
