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| Constitution |
 Africaportal  Politicsportal |
The Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana is the presiding officer of the Parliament of Ghana. The current speaker, Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, was sworn-in as Speaker of the Eight Parliament of Ghana on 7 January 2021. [1]
The office of the Speaker was first created in the then Gold Coast, under the Gold Coast(Constitution) Order in Council, 1950. Subsequent constitutions have provided for the election of the Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana. [2]
The first speaker of the Parliament of Ghana was Sir Emmanuel Charles Quist who was Speaker of the National Assembly in 1951. He stayed at post till December 1957, a few months after Ghana gained independence.
Prior to Ghana's independence, the Governor of Ghana presided over the legislative council. This changed in 1949 when Emmanuel Quist became its first African president. [3] The Legislative Council elected Quist as its first speaker in 1951.
Under the fourth republic, the longest serving speaker of parliament is Daniel Francis Annan who served from 7 January 1993 to 6 January 2001. In January 2009, Joyce Adeline Bamford-Addo became the first female speaker of the Ghanaian parliament. [4]
Article 95 of the 1992 Ghana constitution provides that, the election of a speaker shall be from among the members of parliament or from persons who are qualified to be members of parliament. Where the speaker is elected from among the members of parliament, Article 97 of the constitution specifies that the Speaker vacates his or her seat in Parliament, triggering a by-election. [5] The only person to have been in this position so far is Edward Adjaho who was the elected member for the then Akatsi South constituency. [6] [7]
There are two Deputy Speakers who are elected from among the members of parliament by the members. Both deputy speakers cannot be from the same political party. [5] Currently, the Deputy Speakers are the MP for Bekwai, Joseph Osei-Owusu, of the New Patriotic Party and MP for Fomena, Andrew Asiamah Amoako, an Independent MP. [8]
Article 101 of the Ghana Constitution stipulates that the Speaker presides at all sittings of parliament. Where the speaker is not able to do so, one of the two deputies presides. No parliamentary business can take place without the speaker in the chair.
The Office of the Speaker is the third highest office in Ghana after the president and vice president . Hence, the speaker may act on behalf of the president if neither the president nor the vice president is able to do so. The 1992 constitution stipulates that there should be an election within three months of the speaker assuming the presidency due to the death or removal of the president and vice president. The Speaker does not have a vote in parliament. This means that when the votes are tied, the motion is lost. The Speaker is also the chairman of the parliamentary Service Board. Additionally, the Speaker appoints four other members to this board. The sixth member of the board is the Clerk of Parliament. [5]
Legislative Council of the Gold Coast | ||
|---|---|---|
| President | Time frame | Period |
| Sir Emmanuel Charles Quist | 1949 - 1951 [3] | Gold Coast |
National Assembly of the Gold Coast | ||
| Speaker | Time frame | Period |
| Sir Emmanuel Charles Quist | 1951 - 1957 | Gold Coast |
Parliament of Ghana | ||
| Speaker | Time frame | Period |
| Sir Emmanuel Charles Quist | March 1957 - December 1957 [9] | National Assembly |
| Augustus Molade Akiwumi [10] | February 1958 - June 1960 | National Assembly |
| Joseph Richard Asiedu | July 1960 - June 1965 | 1st Republic |
| Kofi Asante Ofori-Atta [10] | June 1965 - February 1966 | 1st Republic |
| Nii Amaa Ollennu [10] | October 1969 - January 1972 | 2nd Republic |
| Jacob Hackenbug Griffiths-Randolph | September 1979 - December 1981 | 3rd Republic |
| Daniel Francis Annan [11] | January 1993 - January 2001 | 4th Republic (1st and 2nd parliaments) |
| Peter Ala Adjetey [12] | January 2001 - January 2005 | 4th Republic (3rd parliament) |
| Ebenezer Sekyi Hughes [13] | January 2005 - January 2009 | 4th Republic (4th parliament) |
| Joyce Adeline Bamford-Addo [14] | January 2009 - January 2013 | 4th Republic (5th parliament) First female Speaker |
| Edward Adjaho | January 2013 [15] - January 2017 | 4th Republic (6th parliament) |
| Aaron Mike Oquaye | January 2017 [16] - January 2021 | 4th Republic (7th parliament) |
| Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin | January 2021 [17] [1] [18] - Incumbent | 4th Republic (8th parliament) |
| Speaker | Ethnicity | Religious affiliatiom |
| Emmanuel Charles Quist | Euro-African/ Ga | Presbyterian [19] [20] |
| Augustus Molade Akiwumi | Yoruba | Anglican (later Christian Scientist) |
| Joseph Richard Asiedu | Akuapem (Akan) | Presbyterian |
| Kofi Asante Ofori-Atta | Akyem (Akan) | Presbyterian |
| Nii Amaa Ollennu | Ga | Presbyterian [21] |
| Jacob Hackenburg Griffiths-Randolph | Ga | Anglican |
| Daniel Francis Annan | Ga | Methodist |
| Peter Ala Adjetey | Ga | Anglican |
| Ebenezer Sekyi Hughes | Fante (Akan) | Anglican |
| Joyce Adeline Bamford-Addo | English/Ga | Roman Catholic |
| Edward Adjaho | Avenor Ewe | Christian |
| Aaron Mike Oquaye | Ga | Baptist |
| Alban Bagbin | Dagaaba | Roman Catholic |
Politics of Ghana takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the president of Ghana is both head of state and head of government, and of a two party system. The seat of government is at Golden Jubilee House. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and Parliament. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is a social democratic political party in Ghana, founded by Jerry Rawlings, who was Head of State of Ghana from 1981 to 1993 and the President of Ghana from 1993 to 2001. Following the formation of the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), which ruled Ghana following the military coup d'état on 31 December 1981, there was pressure from the international community to restore democracy. The NDC was formed as the ruling party ahead of elections in 1992, in which Rawlings was elected president, and in 1996 Rawlings was re-elected as the NDC candidate. Rawlings' second term ended in 2001.
Aaron Mike Oquaye is a Ghanaian barrister and politician who served as the sixth Speaker of Parliament of the Fourth Republic of Ghana from 2017 to 2021. An academic, diplomat and Baptist minister, he previously held the cabinet ministerial portfolios for energy and communication and was also the High Commissioner of Ghana to India (2002–04) in the Kufuor administration.
The Parliament of Ghana is the legislative body of the Government of Ghana.
Frederick Worsemao Armah Blay a lawyer, a Ghanaian politician and a member of the Second, Third and Fourth Parliament of the Fourth Republic of Ghana representing the Ellembelle Constituency in the Western Region of Ghana.
Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin is a Ghanaian politician who is the current Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana. He was the Minister for Health in the Ghana government from January 2012 until February 2013. He served as the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West constituency in the Upper West Region of Ghana in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th parliaments of the 4th republic of Ghana. He contested for the presidential candidate slot of the National Democratic Congress in 2019 but subsequently lost to former President John Dramani Mahama. On 7th January 2021 Bagbin was elected Speaker of 8th Parliament of the Fourth Republic.
The Supreme Court of Ghana is the highest judicial body in Ghana. Ghana's 1992 constitution guarantees the independence and separation of the Judiciary from the Legislative and the Executive arms of government.
Sir Emmanuel Charles Quist, also known as Paa Quist was a barrister, educator and judge who served as the first Speaker of the Gold Coast Legislative Assembly and the first Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana.
Akatsi South is one of the constituencies represented in the Parliament of Ghana. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. Akatsi South is located in the Akatsi district of the Volta Region of Ghana.
The Electoral Commission of Ghana (EC) is the official body in Ghana responsible for all public elections. Made up of seven members, its independence is guaranteed by the 1992 Ghana constitution. The current commission was established by the Electoral Commission Act (Act 451) of 1993. Kwadwo Afari-Gyan was the first substantive chairman of the commission, from 1993 to 2015. He was succeeded by Charlotte Osei as the first female chairman of the commission from 2015 to June 2018. Jean Adukwei Mensah succeeded Charlotte Osei in July 2018. On December 5, 2018, the Electoral commission chaired by Jean Adukwei Mensah reverted to the old logo showing the Coat of arms of Ghana and a ballot box showing the hand casting its votes, after the controversy over the new logo.
The Council of State in Ghana is a small body of prominent citizens, analogous to the Council of Elders in the traditional political system, which advises the President on national issues.
Edward Korbly Doe Adjaho, is a Ghanaian politician and lawyer who was Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana from 2013 to 2017. He is the fifth Speaker elected in the Fourth Republic of Ghana and the first Speaker to have been elected from amongst members of Ghana's parliament in the Fourth Republic. Following his elevation to the position of Speaker, he resigned his position as Member of Parliament for the Avenor-Ave constituency in the Parliament of Ghana.
General elections were held in Ghana on 7 December 2016 to elect a President and Members of Parliament. They had originally been scheduled for 7 November 2016, but the date was later rejected by Parliament. Former foreign minister Nana Akufo-Addo of the opposition New Patriotic Party was elected President on his third attempt, defeating incumbent President John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress.
Henrietta Joy Abena Nyarko Mensa-Bonsu, is a Supreme Court Judge of the Republic of Ghana. She was nominated by president Nana-Akufo-Addo. She is the 5th female member of the Court. Prior to her appointment to the Supreme Court, she was a Ghanaian law professor who served as a member of the United Nations Independent Panel On Peace Operations.
Bernard Ahiafor is a Ghanaian politician and a Member of Parliament representing the Akatsi South in the Volta Region on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress.
Peter Kwasi Nortsu-Kotoe is a Ghanaian politician and member of the Seventh Parliament of the Fourth Republic of Ghana representing the Akatsi North Constituency in the Volta Region on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress.
Godfred Yeboah Dame is a Ghanaian lawyer and politician. He is a member of the New Patriotic Party. He was previously the deputy Attorney General and Minister of Justice. He is currently the Attorney General.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)| First Republic: (1957 – 1966) | |
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| Second Republic: (1969 – 1972) | |
| Third Republic: (1979 – 1981) | |
| Fourth Republic: (1993 – present) | |
