The First Deputy Majority Chief Whip, Habib Iddrisu, has reaffirmed that the New Patriotic Party's (NPP) position as the majority in Parliament remains unchanged, despite Speaker Alban Bagbin’s recent declaration of four parliamentary seats as vacant.

According to him, the seating arrangements in Parliament are the prerogative of the Clerk of Parliament and as long as the Clerk has not rearranged the seating to reflect a change in majority or minority status—such as having the National Democratic Congress (NDC) sit on the right side of the Speaker—the NPP maintains its majority position.

“As to who sits where is the decision of the Clerk because they look at the numbers and make the arrangements and if the Clerk hasn’t been able to do that, it means it stays,” he said on JoyNews’ Top Story on Tuesday, October 22. 

He noted that the Speaker has not issued any directives regarding which caucus should sit to his right as the majority or to his left as the minority.

Mr Iddrisu stated that leaders of both caucuses met with Speaker Bagbin, during which he clarified that he had not given any instruction concerning the seating arrangements, apart from acknowledging the Supreme Court’s stay on his earlier declaration of vacant seats.

He said that during the meeting, Effutu MP and leader of the NPP caucus, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, informed Speaker Bagbin that NPP MPs had arrived early in Parliament only to find NDC members seated on the majority side of the House.

This, he said triggered a dispute over which side each party should occupy and subsequently led to the boycott of Parliament by the NPP MPs.

“The NDC leadership was of the view that the ruling that the Speaker did made them the majority and for that matter, they wanted to sit on the right. The Speaker said he hasn’t made that ruling that they should sit on the right,” he said.

Mr Iddrisu added, “That’s the reason we said that if the Minority will not leave the right-hand side of the Speaker, we will go into our offices and listen to him.”

Background.

In a dramatic turn of events, members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) broke into a mix of boos and jubilant cheers as New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs exited Parliament on Tuesday morning.

The lively atmosphere preceded the day’s parliamentary session, with the NDC caucus claiming majority status, intensifying the ongoing political drama. This shift follows a series of conflicting signals from both the Speaker of Parliament and the Supreme Court regarding vacant seats in the House.

Last week, Speaker Alban Bagbin announced that four parliamentary seats had become vacant—three held by NPP MPs and one by an NDC member. However, the Supreme Court issued a stay of execution on the Speaker's declaration, allowing the affected MPs to retain their seats and participate in parliamentary activities until a final ruling on the matter is made.

This development sparked a leadership crisis in Parliament, disrupting the balance of power. With the NDC now holding 136 seats and the NPP 135, the NDC claims it has taken over the Majority position. The shift has led to confusion, with both parties vying for control in the House.

Tensions reached new heights on October 22, as both sides insisted they were the Majority. The NDC MPs determined not to relinquish their newly claimed status, argued that the Supreme Court lacked the authority to interfere in the internal affairs of Parliament, an independent institution governed by its own rules.

The situation escalated further when NPP MPs walked out of the chamber after NDC members occupied seats typically reserved for them. Leading the NPP group, Alexander Afenyo-Markin explained that their decision to exit was a peaceful one, intended to avoid confrontation and preserve order.

He added that they would await further directives from the Speaker, Alban Bagbin, before deciding their next steps.