Joe Wise Shares His Disappointment In The 8th Parliament

The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu, popularly known as Joe Wise, has expressed disappointment in the performance of Ghana's 8th Parliament in an interview with Citi News. What he said only pointed to the disturbing trend in the productivity of the legislature, which has gradually disillusioned most Ghanaians.

Joe Wise is particularly concerned about the lack of concentration that has characterized this session of Parliament. This, he argues, is because instead of focusing on the main business of lawmaking, members of the 8th Parliament have gotten themselves embroiled in all sorts of useless controversies and quarrels over things that are merely peripheral to their core business. And this, he says, has distracted them from carrying out their work as lawmakers.

The Deputy Speaker showed marked and clear differences in legislature output from previous parliamentary sessions. He pointed out that the number of laws passed through during this term is alarmingly low. "We have done very little in legislation," he lamented, emphasizing that this 8th Parliament stands out as the least productive in recent history. Joe Wise said this house has wasted so much time on inconsequential matters, with which view many will agree, having thought that by now their representatives were working to actively shape laws to benefit the nation.

Furthermore, Joe Wise underlined that conflicts in Parliament are blown further. According to him, matters that earlier could have been resolved through discussion are getting blown into an argument. This kind of environment of dispute does not encourage the Parliament to fulfill its core mission.

As Ghana moves forward, musings by Joe Wise become a clarion call on the 8th Parliament for a readjustment of priorities; the Members should refocus their efforts on the core mandate of crafting meaningful legislation responsive to the needs of their constituents and furthering a well-functioning development process.