Bagbin’s Bribery “Claim”….A Scathing Attack On Parliament

Alban Bagbin Aspiring National Youth Organizer of the opposition New Patriotic Party, Sammy Awuku has appealed to the nation's legislators to interrogate the allegations leveled against them by Member of Parliament (MP) for Nadowli/Kaleo, Hon Alban S.K. Bagbin. Hon. Bagbin is quoted to have said that some Parliamentarians take bribes to articulate the views of some individuals and organizations on the floor of the House. He insisted that this practice has persisted due to the lack of stipulated rules and ethics on lobbying in the nation. Addressing a gathering at Koforidua, Hon. Bagbin reportedly said some MPs, except they receive something in "brown envelopes", would virtually refuse to attend to the needs of people or organizations. "…the reality is that MPs are Ghanaians and there is evidence that some MPs take bribes and come to the floor and try to articulate the views of their sponsors…This is because in Ghana we have not developed what we call lobbying. There are rules; there are ethics regarding lobbying and we in Ghana think that lobbying is taking money, giving it to MPs and writing pieces for them to go articulate on the floor. That is bribery," Alban Bagbin said. He further added that there are MPs who could also be lobbied in the form of capacity building without the offering of bribes. Speaking on Oman FM, Sammy Awuku insisted that Hon. Bagbin's allegations should not be brushed off that easily by his colleagues in Parliament but rather investigate the matter. According to him, the allegations may dent the reputation of the MPs because it is a "scathing attack on the institution of Parliament.”

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana