The new traffic law excludes the Speaker and Chief Justice from siren privileges.

The Office of the Speaker of Parliament and the Chief Justice have been excluded from the list of high-ranking public officials permitted to install a siren in their official vehicles and use a motorcade.

This omission was highlighted by former Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu after a new road traffic Legislative Instrument (L.I.) was laid before Parliament.

“Without personalizing it, it is not Alban Sumana Bagbin. It is the Speaker of Ghana’s Parliament and he is not entitled to a motorcade or a police siren.? In my view Mr. Speaker, it is wrong for the number three to be out of this privilege,” he stated.

He added “The Chief Justice of the Republic of Ghana is also out of the Motor Traffic Regulation and not entitled to it. Mr Speaker, you can keep a minister and member of parliament but this republic has four important personalities; the president, the vice president, the speaker and the chief justice.”

The L.I. was previously withdrawn due to public backlash over the proposal to grant Members of Parliament (MPs) similar privileges.

Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin expressed concern over the exclusion, arguing that it could hinder MPs in carrying out their duties to the people of Ghana.

“Politicians are always in a rush to save their heads when there is a crisis but sometimes we can have a collective fall. We know the challenges we face coming from home and going to our constituencies. It is not that a Member of Parliament, by virtue of having a siren, will use it every day.

“We belittle ourselves. You are a politician and you cannot take public bashing and go and explain to the public? Even you have MPs criticizing Article 71 benefits that they have benefitted from and we hear them on radio and they continue to benefit? We have to take our democracy a little more seriously.”

Meanwhile, Speaker Alban Bagbin has urged the members of Parliament to be assertive and defend their positions whenever necessary.

“Today, when you are talking about a major democracy and spineless Parliament, leadership matters. You must be prepared to take responsibility and defend your positions. If the people knew like you, they will not elect you to lead them, and so they expect you to lead them and be able to persuade them that you are doing so in their interest.

“There are only two people elected on December 7 every election year and they are the president and the MP and the two of you are to lead the people to make their condition better.”