Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin has adjourned Parliament indefinitely due to a lack of quorum, sparked by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs’ failure to attend the sitting.

According to Bagbin, without the required number of MPs present, the house could not proceed with any legislative business, as there was no agenda for the sitting.

He explained that the absence of NPP MPs also meant that the planned emergency sitting, which had been convened to address urgent national matters, could not take place.

Speaker Bagbin expressed his disappointment over the situation, noting that the lack of attendance rendered the session ineffective.

He emphasised that the session could not proceed due to the absence of the NPP MPs and the failure of the business committee to convene in their absence.

“Matters that had been requested for consideration by the business committee are not on today’s Order Paper. In fact, there is no Order Paper for today because the business committee could not meet due to the absence of those who had called for the recall,” Bagbin explained.

He also pointed out the empty side of the House, noting, “As you can see, one side of the House is completely empty. While we technically have a quorum to sit, there is no business to transact, as there is no other authority to bring forward matters for consideration that have not been approved by the House.”

In light of the failure to convene the business committee, Speaker Bagbin said it was not advisable to continue adjourning the House on a day-to-day basis, and therefore, had no choice but to adjourn the sitting indefinitely.

“We are compelled to adjourn once again. Given the current challenges, it is not advisable to keep adjourning daily. Therefore, I will proceed to adjourn the sitting indefinitely.”