Features
Parliament: Any chance for lasting consensus building?
Ghana’s 2022 budget was rejected by the Minority in Parliament on Friday, November 26, 2021. Four days later, on Tuesday, November 30, 2021, however, the Majority Group in Parliament also overturned the decision and approved the policy document. Mr Joseph Osei Owusu, the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, who presided, said the rejection of the budget by the Minority was null, void and had no effect.
According to Mr Osei Owusu, the Speaker of Parliament, Mr Alban Bagbin erred in presiding over the rejection of the budget “since there was no clear majority in the House during the proceedings.” Mr Osei Owusu said: “The consequence of this unfortunate error is that, it is void and inconsequential since it was done in violation of Article 104(1) of the 1992 Constitution.”
The Minority also claims that the approval of the budget by the Majority is unconstitutional and “an attack on Ghana’s parliamentary proceedings and democracy”. Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minority Leader in Parliament says; “the Majority engaged in a constitutional charade.” From the current tussle in Parliament; we reproduce this feature which was published in The Spectator on April 17, 2021, in this very column. I was privileged to have interacted with the venerable Mr Joseph Henry Mensah on a number of occasions and on varied reflective national issues. Affectionately called J.H. Mensah, the quintessential patriot, was very colourful but a controversial politician in the Ghanaian political history. Indeed, J.H. Mensah was not an ordinary Ghanaian politician. He was an international giant in his field of study; economics.
But more or less, he ended up in public life as a full-time politician; holding different portfolios at different times. He was virtually my father. I had the privilege to host him a number of times; on behalf of the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem Municipal Assembly. And he practically contributed to the development of the municipality when I was the Municipal Chief Executive and he, the Senior Minister in President Kufuor’s regime. Incontestably, J.H. Mensah was responsible for Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah’s Seven-Year Development Plan. He told me: “I was invited from the United Nations in 1961 to take charge of the Planning Commission of the Development Plan. “Kwame Nkrumah was the Chairman and I was the Executive Secretary.
I wrote the plan. I did not just take part, I was entirely responsible for it.” He said: “I was also the Chief Economic Adviser to the CPP government at the age of 33. And I was acting purely as a professional and not a member of the CPP. I never joined the CPP.” Readers, why am I disturbing you about this great man who died recently and was buried here in Ghana? In the Fanti language, it is said that “tekyerema mporo”. Literally translated; the tongue never gets rotten and that any word that comes out from the tongue, is everlasting.
Most often, we quote outsiders to support our arguments in our national development efforts. But today, let’s listen to J.H Mensah. He says, “consensus building in Parliament is one area that must be developed in our present civil constitutional dispensation.” According to J.H. Mensah, when the Progress Party was in power between 1969 and 1972, there was a great deal of consensus in Parliament. He said: “The late Komla Agbeli Gbedemah and later, E.R. Madjetey who became opposition leaders, had direct access to Dr K.A. Busia’s office.
“And in Parliament, the government involved the opposition in the planning of major policies.” According to him: “This runs counter to the present system where the Minority is left in the dark but asked to support government policies.” Mr. Mensah says: “You can’t use Parliament like a rubber-stamp.
So that anytime you want parliamentarians to vote on something; you drive them like sheep,” stressing that, “this is one of the fundamental defects of the democracy we are practising here.” Readers, as a nation we cannot have consensus by declaration. We can get consensus by discussions; involving compromising and bargaining. And is it happening in our Parliament? Otherwise, why should ballot boxes be kicked and “stolen” in Parliament and ballot papers chewed like tiger nuts? And, for example, why should the approval of the fiscal policy of government and ministerial nominees, become intractable bone of contention in Parliament? And why should the Speaker of Parliament be branded as making Parliament an enclave of top opposition figures and fanatics? And why should the General Secretary of the opposition NDC openly claim that the “incompetence” of the current Finance Minister will inure to the benefit of his party; come the 2024 general election; thus, resulting in his recent approval by the Minority as Finance Minister? In effect, as a nation can’t we enhance the development of consensus in Parliament, besides having our national priorities right? And as indicated by J.H. Mensah; in Parliament for instance, can’t the NPP administration involve the NDC in planning some of its major prolicies? Again, per J.H. Mensah’s example; can’t the leadership of the Minority have direct access to the President’s office? Are the two major political parties in Ghana enemies or opponents? Readers, democracy is more than the sum of its institutions.
A healthy democracy depends in a large part on the development of a democratic civic culture. Culture, in this sense, does not refer to art, literature or music but the behaviours, practices and norms that define the ability of a people to govern themselves. So, as a nation, can’t we develop our own democratic civic culture to govern ourselves?
Contact email/WhatsApp of the author: asmahfrankg@gmail.com (0505556179)
By G. Frank Asmah
On Sunday, October 11, 2026, it was the turn of Ghanaian Catholics in Finland to lead the singing in the church service of the African Catholic Chaplaincy in Finland (ACCF).
It was indeed a spirit-filled feeling for worshippers present. And for the Ghanaian migrants, the occasion also brought back to them memories of church services in their home country, Ghana.
The ACCF has a roster for each country/community to sing from time to time. Next Sunday will be the turn of the Nigerian community. Other communities that usually sing are the Kenyan/Tanzanian community, the Cameroonian, the Ugandan, group, etc.
A powerful religious experience
The mass services of the Chaplaincy usually give a powerful religious experience and a display of cultural diversity, especially in occasions such as when the Bishop of Helsinki, Bishop Raimo Goyarrola, celebrated mass with the Chaplaincy on Pentecost Day, May 24, 2026.
There was a similar time of spiritual joy last month (September 27, 2026) when Emeritus Bishop Teemu Sippo, former Bishop of Helsinki, visited the Chaplaincy. Bishop Teemu was the main celebrant, assisted by the Chaplain, Reverend Father Thomas Otieno.
Last Sunday, Reverend Father Bernard Sor, a Ghanaian Catholic priest based in Austria, was the main celebrant in the mass service where he performed a rite of baptism. Fr Bernard had celebrated mass a few months ago when he visited his sister and her husband in Helsinki. 
All these well-attended religious occasions indeed leave lasting memories. The homilies (peaching) by the priests usually emphasize religious tenets such as the importance of loving and serving God in truth, existing in peace with our fellow humans to promote unity in diversity, etc.
Unity in diversity and a colourful display of cultures
The African Chaplaincy church services usually produce impressive displays of diverse cultures from different parts of Africa and elsewhere. The events are often spiced by rich cultural displays of dances and colourful attires which are a delight to watch.
On special occasions, members of the Ghanaian Catholic community, in their gay and colourful kente attire and with adowa dance and music, usually lead the procession into the church. Other communities such as the Cameroonian, Nigerian, Kenyan and Tanzanian as well as Sudanese/South Sudanese groups also put up well-choreographed performances from their cultures.
The African Catholic Chaplaincy in Finland
The African Chaplaincy was founded on June 4, 2017, which was a Pentecost Sunday, in a Pontifical High Mass celebrated by Monsignor Emeritus Sippo S.C.I., the then Bishop of Helsinki, at the St. Mary’s Catholic Parish Church in Helsinki.
The Chaplaincy was created by Bishop Teemu in collaboration with the Diocesan body when they detected a great flocking of African immigrants to Finland, the majority of whom were Catholics. This was to give the immigrants a possibility to integrate into the Finnish society by worshiping as Catholics and in their African cultural identity.
The responsibility of the Chaplaincy was given by Bishop Teemu to Father Dr Leonard Wobilla Shwei, who is thus the first Chaplain and ably led the Chaplaincy. He was succeeded a few years ago by Father Thomas Otieno, who continues to move the Chaplaincy forward. Thank you!
GHANA MATTERS column appears fortnightly. Written in simple, layman’s terms, it concentrates on matters about Ghana and beyond. It focuses on everyday life issues relating to the social, cultural, economic, religious, political, health, sports, youth, gender, etc. It strives to remind us all that Ghana comes first. The column also takes a candid look at the meanings and repercussions of our actions, especially those things we take for granted or even ignore. There are key Ghanaian values we should uphold rather than disregard with impunity. We should not overlook the obvious. We need to search for the hidden or deeply embedded values and try to project them.
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
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She did not find out he was cheating. She found out he was drowning.
It was two weeks after their beautiful wedding. The jollof was still in the fridge. A loan officer called her number-not his-and politely asked, “Madam, please tell your husband to pay his overdue loan. We have been calling him.”
That was how she discovered her new husband had entered their marriage with a hidden debt of over GH¢ 40,000. No cheating. No other woman. Just a financial secret.
And that is how many Ghanaian marriages begin to die. Not with a shout, but with a secret alert on a phone.
We prepare for the wedding. We do not prepare for the wallet.
What is money honesty?
Let me define it simply. Money honesty is not that you both earn the same. It is that you both know the same. It is the ability to sit down and say without fear:
“This is how much I earn.”
“This is how much I owe.”
“This is how I was raised to see money.”
“This is what scares me about money.”
Financial transparency is not about control. It is about clarity. You cannot build trust on top of secrets.
Many couples tell me, “Counsellor, we love each other, love will handle money.” I always answer, “Love is the car, but money honesty is the fuel. Love without honesty cannot move.”
How To Buy Your Marriage Insurance Today – My 5-Step Protocol
If you are engaged, newly married, or even 20 years in marriage, you can still fix this. At Counsellor Prince & Associates Consult—CPAC, this is what I give couples:
Step 1: The 90-Minute Money Naked Session.
No phones, no blame. Each partner writes down on paper: Monthly income, monthly debts, monthly family obligations, savings, and your biggest money fear. Then you exchange papers. Read it. Don’t react for 24 hours. Just absorb.
Step 2: Create OUR Money, YOUR Money, My Money.
You need three pots. OUR money for rent, food, school fees, utilities, properties, and the like— joint contribution. YOUR money and MY money—a small agreed allowance no one questions. This stops the feeling of being controlled.
Step 3: The No-Secret Debt Rule.
Agree from today: No new loan, no new hire purchase, no new family financial commitment above GHS 500 without telling each other first. Not permission, but information.
Step 4: Talk About Your Money Personality.
Are you a Spender or a Saver? Are you Risky or Safe? Most Ghanaian marriages are a Spender married to a Saver. Neither is wrong. But if you don’t understand your partner’s personality, you will call his saving “stinginess” and her spending “wastefulness.”
Step 5: Do a Monthly 30-Minute Money Date
Not an argument date. Light, with tea. “How did we do this month? What worried you? What should we plan for next month?” Couples who do this divorce far less.
My Final Word
Before you say “I Do” at the altar, have pre-marital counselling and also have the money talk on the sofa.
Ask your partner:
“If I lost my job today, how long can we survive?”
“What debt are you bringing into this marriage?”
“How much do you send to your family monthly and will that continue?”
If he or she gets angry that you asked, don’t get married yet. A person who is angry about accountability will be abusive about money.
Marriage insurance is not bought at Star Assurance or Enterprise. It is bought in honest conversations when no one is watching.
The wedding costs one day. The marriage costs a lifetime. Don’t enter a lifetime contract and covenant with hidden costs.
You can still insure your marriage today.
Source:
Counselor Prince Offei, CPAC’s founder, is a leading Mental Health Professional, Marriage Counsellor, Author, ADR Expert/Arbitrator, and Spectator Newspaper Columnist. He writes on relationships, marriage, parenting, special needs support, and their connection to mental health. For therapy, counselling, or enquiries, contact Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC) in Accra on 0559850604 / 0551428486.
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