The Majority and Minority caucuses in Parliament have clashed over Speaker Alban Bagbin's decision to recall Parliament from recess to consider what he has described as urgent government business.

Members of Parliament are expected to return for a five-day sitting beginning Monday, August 24, to deliberate on a number of issues, including the vetting of newly appointed ministers, changes in the leadership of the Majority caucus, and the reconsideration of the anti-LGBTQ+ bill.

However, the Minority has questioned the need for the recall, arguing that the matters before the House are neither urgent nor significant enough to warrant reconvening Parliament during its recess.

Speaking on the issue, Deputy Minority Whip and Member of Parliament for Tolon, Habib Iddrisu, argued that government business had continued uninterrupted in the absence of substantive ministers in the past.

He noted that the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology had operated for about a year under the supervision of a caretaker minister.

"Government was still going on and other government business was still being executed by other caretaker ministers," he said.

Mr Iddrisu also pointed to the Ministry of Defence, where the Finance Minister previously served in a caretaker capacity while continuing to perform his duties at the Finance Ministry.

He argued that if major government decisions, including budget-related matters, could be handled by caretaker ministers, there was no justification for recalling Parliament during its recess.

The Minority has also raised concerns about the financial implications of the recall.

Although Parliament does not publicly disclose the cost of such exercises, the sitting is expected to involve transportation costs for all 276 Members of Parliament, as well as allowances for lawmakers because the sitting falls within the recess period.

But Majority Chief Whip Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor rejected the Minority's arguments, insisting that it is not the opposition's responsibility to determine what constitutes urgent government business.

"It is not the Minority that determines urgency or otherwise of government business," he said.

"You cannot say that because there's been a caretaker minister for a year, when there's a need for a substantive minister so that certain key things can be done, we shouldn't do it because you think it is not urgent," he added.

With both sides firmly defending their positions, the recall is expected to reignite political tensions when Parliament reconvenes later this month