Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin has described as suicidal for the country if government should shutdown due to the surge in numbers of positive cases for COVID-19 by MPs.
Parliament, after 71 persons, comprising 15 MPs and 56 staff tested positive for the novel coronavirus, received calls from health experts, and Civil Society Organizations including Africa Centre for Parliamentary Affairs (ACEPA) to as a matter of urgency shutdown Parliament to prevent further spread of the virus.
But addressing the House, the Speaker urged the legislators and staff of Parliament to adhere to all precautionary measures to ensure that the disease does not spread in the House.
“We should not allow Parliament to shutdown that is not an alternative, it would be too suicidal for the whole country because there are a lot of things we have to do.
“Even for this country to be able to fight Covid-19, Parliament will have to work with the executive and the judiciary to keep Ghana alive. So let’s continue to be ‘Honourables’ that word is not an empty title. An Honorable Member of Parliament must behave honorably,” Mr. Bagbin stated.
Meanwhile, the Minister-designate for Communications and Digitisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful has called out the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) for breaching the ethical standards of doctor-patient confidentiality.
Mrs Ekuful questioned why a reputable institution like Noguchi, will deliver testing results of MPs and their staff to the leadership of Parliament without their prior knowledge and subsequent cosent.
“Going forward, I think that it is important that they design a consent form that everyone who takes a test to notify them that their test will be shared with the Ghana Health Service for contact tracing purposes and with the head of department if it is an institution that request for the test.
Speaker of Parliament Alban Sumana Bagbin had earlier on Thursday, February 4, 2021, informed the House that 15 Members of Parliament (MPs), 56 Parliamentary Staff had tested positive to Covid-19, in a recent test done by the Noguchi Memorial Centre for Medical Research in the House.
Speaker Bagbin in the announcement said the MPs and Staff had been contacted and advised to self-isolate and had been given prescriptions to facilitate their recovery.
As part of measures in line with COVID-19 protocols, Speaker Bagbin announced that in consultation with Leadership and the Clerk, had taken a decision for the House to sit on Tuesdays and Thursdays to curb a further spread of the virus.
According to some Parliamentarians, the Speaker does not have the right to publish the confidential medical reports of MPs.
The Member of Parliament for South Dayi, Rockson Dafeamekpor indicated that in spite of the Speaker having the test result of all legislators, it will be indiscreet for the Speaker to openly declare MPs who have tested positive for the virus.
Executive Director of ACEPA, Dr. Rashid Draman, in an interview then, said the MPs, besides being punished, should also have their names published.
