Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare( Kwaku Azar) has described the boycott of today’s State of the Nation Address(SONA) by the President as purposeless and aimless.
For him, the boycott has no clear purpose and will achieve nothing for the opposition National Democratic Congress( NDC) members who constitute the minority in Parliament.
“The Accra boycotts of 1948 had a clear purpose and was effective in achieving its goals. Today’s boycott lacks a clear purpose and will not achieve anything,” he reacted on social media.
He explained that rather than boycott the address, the minority could have used the opportunity to respond to issues raised in the State of the Nation Address(SONA), adding that it is a good platform for the minority to air its grievances.
“A boycott is unnecessary because apart from being able to heckle the President during his delivery, the minority also has a chance to respond to SONA. I believe it is more effective to use that platform to air their grievances,” he suggested.
Legally, he added that the SONA, a constitutional provision that should be observed by all or absenting oneself should be done with express permission.
“Besides, I think SONA is a constitutional requirement and must be observed as such by all legislators unless they have prior permission from the Speaker to be absent,” he argued.
Meanwhile, the SONA is currently ongoing in Parliament.
