A dramatic procedural standoff unfolded in Parliament on Tuesday as Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga opposed Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin’s attempt to ask a parliamentary question from the Dispatch Box.
The tension-filled exchange occurred during Question Time when the Minority Leader approached the Dispatch Box to pose a question, a move Ayariga challenged as unprecedented and procedurally improper.
Mahama Ayariga demanded that Afenyo-Markin point to the exact Standing Order that allows a member to ask questions from the Dispatch Box.
Also read: Afenyo-Markin, Ayariga clash over use of Dispatch Box to ask questions
“Our Standing Orders are clear: at Question Time, the Speaker shall call successively each member in whose name a question stands on the Order Paper. The member shall rise and ask the question that stands in the name of the member on the Order Paper.”
Ayariga argued that all members, regardless of their leadership status, follow the same rules when it comes to asking questions.
“Every other member, including myself, stands in my seat to ask questions. If the Minority Leader goes to the Dispatch Box to ask a question, and I have follow-up questions, should I also go there to ask mine? This is not the practice,” he said.
Ayariga declared that the Minority Leader’s action would not be allowed, citing parliamentary tradition.
“Mr. Speaker, as for today, it will not happen. He will not go to the Dispatch Box to ask questions. He will stand where he is and ask the question, and the Minister will answer,” he declared.
He accused Afenyo-Markin of ignoring long-established norms: “Every day, he draws attention to tradition and practice. He should also follow the traditions and practices of this House.”
Background
The Dispatch Box in Ghana’s Parliament—mirroring the traditions of the British House of Commons—is typically reserved for ministers, leaders making formal statements, or during debates of significant national interest. While not explicitly banned, its use during Question Time by opposition leaders is highly unusual.
Afenyo-Markin, earlier in the day, had argued that no Standing Order prohibits him from using the Dispatch Box, particularly with the Speaker’s discretion and as a caucus leader. He also cited examples from other Commonwealth parliaments.
The Speaker, caught between strict adherence to tradition and evolving parliamentary practice, ruled subsequently that the Minority leader could not use the Dispatch Box to ask questions.