The University of Ghana Parliament House has officially elected Sulemana Ibrahim Musah as Speaker of its 22nd House, following an unopposed election held over the weekend. In line with parliamentary procedures governing the House, Mr Musah secured the position through a simple majority vote, becoming the new Speaker after emerging as the sole nominee for the role.
Speaking to Univers News after his election, the newly elected Speaker outlined his immediate priorities, with a strong emphasis on capacity-building and competence among Members of Parliament.
“I want to set a tone of competence and preparedness. I have been part of the University of Ghana Parliament House for a long time. I joined the house in Level 100 during the 19th House. Because of that experience, I am so passionate about parliamentary competence, preparedness, and the mastery of parliamentary rudiments’’, he said.
According to him, his foremost priority is to organise a comprehensive capacity-building and training programme for all Members of Parliament, aimed at strengthening their understanding of parliamentary procedures and legislative work.
“My absolute first priority is a comprehensive capacity-building and training programme for all members. I am engaging Parliamentary Network Affairs, which deals with parliamentary and related activities, to train our members to operate at the highest standards’’, he explained.
He added that the training will focus on key parliamentary areas such as standing orders, legislative drafting, debate procedures, and effective parliamentary communication.
“We are going to elevate our understanding of parliamentary rudiments, the art of debate, how debates are conducted in the House, and legislative drafting to the highest level, similar to practices in the national Parliament,” he said.
Beyond internal reforms, Mr Musah noted that his leadership would prioritise student concerns by ensuring that the University of Ghana Parliament serves as a platform for meaningful debate and advocacy on student issues.
“By the end of my tenure, I want the average University of Ghana student to see this House as a premier leadership grooming ground a platform where students who come to the University of Ghana with big dreams but have no clear map on how to reach these dreams”
He stressed that the Parliament must be intellectually vibrant and committed to the welfare of students, whether at the Students’ Representative Council (SRC) level or within national discourse.
“I want students to feel that their concerns are being debated by a body that is well-vested, intellectually sharp, and deeply committed to their welfare,”whether at the SRC level, or national level. I’m going to make sure that we elevate, or we give the student that platform’’, he disclosed.
Reflecting on the leadership style he hopes to embody, Mr Musah said he intends to lead with humility and service.
“I want to be remembered at the end of my tenure as a servant leader. I’ve always believed that for one to become a great leader, you must be a great server. And so therefore, I don’t see myself as a leader who comes to be served, but as a leader who comes to serve, and provide service to people’’.
He concluded by emphasising that under his leadership, the office of the Speaker will prioritise service to students.
“In the 22nd Parliament, the office of the Speaker will not be a throne of authority, but a desk of service,” he added.
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Story by Oliver Arthur Acorlor| univers.ug.edu.gh
Edited by Deborah Owusu
