A bill to ensure the renaming of the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) to Accra International Airport is expected to be brought to the House by the Minister of Transport, Mr Joseph Bukari Nikpe, during the First Meeting of the Second Session of the Ninth Parliament.
The introduction of the bill, known as the Accra International Airport Bill, was disclosed by the Majority Leader and Leader of Government Business, Mr Mahama Ayariga, during a media engagement in Parliament yesterday.
According to him, the bill was among many other bills expected to be introduced by the Ministers of the various Ministries during the First Meeting of the Second Session of the Ninth Parliament for consideration and passage.
“We are changing the name of our Airport from Kotoka International Airport to Accra International Airport. So, a bill, known as the Accra International Airport Bill, will be brought by the Minister of Transport for the name to be changed to that effect,” Mr Ayariga disclosed.
He explained that the decision to rename the Kotoka International Airport had nothing to do with the personality of Mr Kotoka, but was to honour the people of Accra who gave out the land for it to be built.
“I am told that the KIA was used to be called the Accra International Airport before the name was changed. It is not fair to the people of Accra that they have given you land to build an airport and the airport is named after them, and you have gone to change it and put your name on it,” Mr Ayariga observed.
He noted that Parliament was committed to ensuring the passage of the Proper Human Rights and Family Values Bill, also known as the LGBTQ+ Bill, which the Speaker of Parliament, Mr Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, during the First Session of the Ninth Parliament, said, needed to be reintroduced before the House.
Moreover, Mr Ayariga said that Parliament would hold public institutions accountable on the performance report on their social services deliveries.
According to him, holding public institutions accountable in that regard was important as the report had not been given the needed attention by Parliament.
“Ghanaians expect that the institutions will get better, and deliver and it is Parliament that those institutions have to report to, and if those institutions are not delivering, then it means Parliament is not doing its work,” Mr Ayariga said.
For his part, the Minority Leader, Mr Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, cited the passage of bills under a certificate of urgency, delay in the reintroduction of the Proper Human Rights and Family Values Bill, and cost of living, as some of the concerns of the Minority Caucus.
He further urged the Majority Caucus to accommodate the Minority and for Speaker Bagbin to hear and fast track its motions.
“The Minority has not been obstructive. We’ve been largely cooperative. If you look at last year, the Ministerial nominees, only two or three were voted for, but almost all of them, we took them by consensus,” Mr Afenyo-Markin added.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY
Follow Ghanaian Times WhatsApp Channel today. https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbAjG7g3gvWajUAEX12Q
Trusted News. Real Stories. Anytime, Anywhere.
Join our WhatsApp Channel now! https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbAjG7g3gvWajUAEX12Q
