Akufo-Addo’s SONA date indefinitely off

The Business Committee of Parliament is still unsure when President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will be in the House to deliver the State of the Nation address.

No date has been fixed after two scheduled dates Thursday, February 24, and Thursday, March 3 have been canceled.

Reading the agenda for the business week ending Friday, March 11, Deputy Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin said the House is being put in order before programming the President to appear.

He insisted that the president is not out of time and will deliver the address as per Article 67 of the 1992 Constitution.

“The President is not out of time,” the Effutu Member of Parliament pointed out.

“He is within the time required to come, so we are putting our house in order as a House.

“We will program Mr. President to come.”

But this did not go down well with some Minority MPs, who think there is something fishy ongoing.

“If we have to arrange, is it that the House doesn’t care. We care to know about the real state of affairs [at the presidency],” stated Buem MP Kofi Iddi Adams.

On his part, Sefwi Juaboso MP Kwabena Mintah Akandoh said President Akufo-Addo is being dodgy because he has no good news for the nation.

“Next week is the seventh week,” he stated. “Mr. Speaker, as I speak to you now we don’t even know when the president will be in the House.

“Because it has never happened before except that he has no good news for the nation.”

Minority Chief Whip Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka was alarmed, drawing the attention of the House that this is the first time in the Fourth Republic that such an address has gone into March.

“Deputy Majority Leader, we have been ready since February 24 so don’t put the blame at our doorstep and remember that we have gone more than halfway through this Meeting.”