The Speaker says the new standing orders, which took effect on Tuesday, February 6th, offer the opportunity for Members of Parliament to belong to an independent caucus as opposed to aligning with either the Majority or Minority caucus.

Alban Bagbin revealed this during the presentation of his opening remarks in Parliament.

“The system that we have now allows you to belong to what we call the independent caucus. You don’t need to align with the Minority or the Majority. As I state very often, we can have an independent president in this country without members of parliament. The rules have changed, and this change recognizes the situation that we are in and also prepares for other future scenarios.”

Per the new Standing Orders, MPs will commence sessions by reciting the National Pledge.

This significant change in the new standing orders introduces a requirement for heads of government institutions to directly appear before Parliament to address queries related to their agencies.

The shift contrasts with the previous standing orders, which permitted Ministers of State to represent the heads of institutions during questioning.