The woes of the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Trobu constituency, Gloria Owusu, appear far from over as some residents are calling for her resignation to pave the way for a by-election, citing alleged incompetence.
According to the aggrieved constituents, the first-term MP is unfit to represent the area, arguing that her recent public comments and overall performance in her 11 months in Parliament have been unsatisfactory.
Others have questioned how the businesswoman-turned-politician secured her parliamentary seat, given what they describe as her limited understanding of parliamentary procedures and national policy issues.
The latest call for her removal follows comments she made after the presentation of the 2026 Budget Statement on Thursday, November 13—remarks many have described as uninformed.
Shortly after Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson presented the budget, Ms Owusu told journalists that the COVID-19 levy had not been scrapped as announced, insisting that the levy was still being charged at the ports.
“I am a Member of Parliament and a businesswoman. It is not true that the government has removed the COVID-19 levy. I have written duties and the COVID-19 levy is still there. If the Minister says he has removed it, then maybe it will reflect from tomorrow going. But as we speak, everyone who clears goods from the ports and all who take their goods from various borders knows the levy is still in effect,” she said.
Her comments sparked widespread backlash across social and traditional media, with many Ghanaians questioning her grasp of parliamentary processes—particularly the fact that the budget must be approved by Parliament before any policy changes take effect.
Veteran journalist Kwesi Pratt Jnr was among those who expressed disappointment.
Reacting in a video shared on X (formerly Twitter), he questioned how Ms Owusu became an MP, describing her comments as evidence of a lack of understanding of the 1992 Constitution.
“I saw a video of a lady, an NPP Member of Parliament, who was asked to comment on the budget, and she was like, ‘We should go to the market, the prices are the same, nothing has changed.’ And I was wondering how this woman got into Parliament,” he said.
“Why? This woman is an Article 71 officeholder. She is sitting in Parliament and doesn’t know that what was read was the 2026 Budget. She doesn’t know that as of yesterday, the budget hadn’t been approved?”
As calls for her resignation intensify, it remains unclear how the MP and her party leadership will respond to the growing pressure within the Trobu constituency.
