The Majority Caucus in Parliament says the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Bagbin has been provided with the maximum security such that none of the previous speakers had half of it.
According to them, Alban Bagbin has four police officers in his known residence, three police officers in his secretariat and five other policemen in and around the Speaker’s office block any day any time.
In a statement to comment on the withdrawal of soldiers from Bagbin’s security, the Majority Caucus said in the history of the 4th Republic, all the Speakers have been provided with police protection and not military protection.
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However, it noted that it is only Alban Bagbin who made a request to the Minister of Defence for Military protection and the Minister bent backwards to accommodate him.
It also added that this has not been a regular feature in Parliamentary Security considerations.
“In the event, if the military insist on regularising his security detail how does that compromise the Speaker’s security, or put him in harm’s way as the Speaker himself has stated?,”the Majority Caucus quizzed.
It noted that a statement from the Speaker’s office emphasised that the withdrawal of the military personnel is an attempt to gag Mr. Bagbin, stating that it was difficult to comprehend the meaning of this.
It added that,”Rt. Hon. Bagbin is the only Speaker who has invited serving military officers to serve in Parliament. Parliament now has a serving Colonel as the Marshal of Parliament. This has never happened in Parliament since 1957. If, in the opinion of the Speaker, the police have some deficiency, shouldn’t all of us work to cure any deficiency so detected?”
Below is a statement:
Ghana| Atinkaonline.com| Porcia Oforiwaa Ofori
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