Protect Parliament or lose democracy — Majority Leader warns Ghana's youth

If soldiers ever try to take over Ghana again, the first thing they'll do is shut down Parliament. That's the warning Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga delivered on Monday as he rallied young Ghanaians to stand behind the country's democratic institutions.

Speaking at the launch of 'Parliament and You' — a new educational series between Parliament and Junior Graphic — Ayariga told schoolchildren that during every military coup Ghana has suffered, the junta always abolished the legislature. "When they form a military government, the soldiers who assume the governance step into the shoes of the executive. They normally leave the judges, that is the judiciary, but at all times, they always shut down the parliament," he said.

Ayariga, who's also the National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP for Bawku Central, explained that Parliament is the only place where multiple political parties can coexist under Ghana's constitution. "You can't have a different political party in the Executive. The Executive is either fully NDC or fully NPP. But in the Parliament, you can have all the different political parties which have won seats," he said.

The event took place at Parliament House in Accra and drew top officials including First Deputy Speaker Bernard Ahiafor, Communications Minister Samuel Nartey George, Clerk-to-Parliament Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, and Graphic Communications Group MD Ato Afful.

'Parliament and You' is designed to reach about 50,000 children aged 10 to 17 through the Junior Graphic newspaper every week. It'll use features, stories, quizzes, puzzles, illustrations and competitions to explain how Parliament works in simple terms.

Ayariga walked the students through Ghana's constitutional history — from the First Republic through the military interruptions of 1966, 1972, 1979, and 1981. He stressed that under military rule, there's no room for opposing views. "The idea of democracy is that let them say whatever they want to say. When you finish, you put the matter to a vote," he stated.

He argued that building public understanding of Parliament is essential to protecting democracy for the long term. "It's become necessary for parliament, as established, to seek to rally the population to stand firmly behind it so that in future if anybody attempts to overthrow the government and to shut down parliament, the people will stand behind their parliament," he said.

The Majority Leader also encouraged students to visit Parliament, observe proceedings, and participate in essay competitions. He said similar programmes in other countries have led young people to set up model parliaments in their schools and communities.

Clerk-to-Parliament Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror was commended by Ayariga for forging the partnership with Graphic Communications Group. The initiative is expected to run weekly in Junior Graphic, making parliamentary processes accessible to a generation that's only known constitutional rule since 1993.