By Ragan M. Conteh
The Speaker of Parliament, Hon Dr. Abass Bundu, has accepted the proposal from the Coalition for Change (C4C) to change their Caucus Leader in Parliament. Dr Bundu had earlier halted the Change of Leadership of Hon. Emerson Lamina in Parliament.
Almost immediately after Hon. Saa Emerson Lamina voted in favor of the NEC boss’ approval, he was accused of anti-party activities by some aggrieved Party leadership members who then wrote a letter to Parliament demanding his immediate removal from the said position.
Embarrassingly, their letter was thrown out of Parliament earlier by the Speaker, Hon. Chernoh Abass Bundu, since the letter lacked locus standing, as the procedures leading to the removal of a political leader in Parliament were blatantly breached. Four, out of the Party’s eight Members of Parliament, led by the deputy leader, Hon. Francis Saa Bhendu and some aggrieved party executive members, were said to have pioneered the boomerang.
The accusation, Hon Lamina said, stands on “mosquito legs,” because, according to him, his letter of removal from the Party Secretariat was sent to the administrative head of Parliament, instead of the political head who is the Speaker of House.
The C4C former Leader, Emerson, said, apart from the above, the national executive of the Party are illegally seated since their mandates had expired. Therefore, he said, they have no locus standi to take such a decision.
With the above, Hon Saa Emerson Lamina emphatically stated that he still remains the recognized and legitimate party leader in Parliament.
The Speaker also stated that, after perusing the National Constitution and the Parliamentary Standing Orders thoroughly, he did not see any provision or reference where a national Secretary General of a political party should write to Parliament for the removal of a leader in Parliament.
He said only the leadership of a party has the mandate, as per parliamentary precedent, to make such request. Hence, he affirmed that Hon. Lamina should remain the recognized and legitimate leader of the party in Parliament.
The Party’s legal team had also shattered the hopes of the aggrieved members, including the leader, as they backed the Speakers’ action on the grounds of breach of procedures.
The Speaker, at last, after rigorous consultations with the leadership of (C4C), finally succumbed to the decision of C4C by recognizing the newly appointed Hon. Francis Saa Bhendu as the Caucus Leader in Parliament.
Speaking to the newly appointed C4C Caucus Leader in Parliament, Hon. Bhendu, he said he was now taking the mantle of the Party leadership in Parliament, adding that this is a new era for the Party.
He continued that, the Party is bigger than all of them, and promised not to compromise the Party’s decision in the House of Parliament.
Hon. Bhendu urged all members of the C4C Party in the House to work towards decisions of the Party as well as development of the country.