The Parliamentary Network Africa (PNAfrica) has demanded the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin to subject parliament’s vetting committee members responsible for the chaos witnessed during proceedings yesterday to some punitive measures.
Yesterday, January 30, 2025, vetting proceedings turned boisterous following the vetting of Communication Minister-designate, Samuel Nartey George, popularly known as Sam George. Unlike in the case the vetting proceedings involving other minister-designates, Sam George was subjected to prolonged hours of vetting.
The minister-designate was vetted for about four hours, as the Minority leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin asked series of questions, some of which have been described as unrelated and irrelevant to the ministry. In fact, others believe the minority leader was using the opportunity to avenge former president Akuffo-Addo and some of his appointees.
However, the minority have debunked such claims, asserting that they owe the public due deligence under such a circumstance where a person is being considered to manage a government institution.
Following Sam George’s vetting, there were three more minister-designates to be vetted, including for the health, sports and foreign affairs ministry. But after the vetting the minister-designate for sports, Kofi Adams, which concluded close to half past ten in the evening, the minority side argued that they could no longer proceed.
According to the minority in side, their protest was due to the reason that they had agreed to vet a certain number of minister-designates but the majority sought to override the agreement.
The minority’s protest was followed by aggression, with committee members seen visibly destroying state properties.
The PNAfrica, which has been instituted to ensure transparency in parliament, has deemed the violent incident as “shameful and dishonourable.”
“Members of Parliament are expected to uphold the highest standards of behaviour, serving as role models for the nation. However, their disgraceful conduct during the vetting process has instead undermined the very principles of democratic governance and parliamentary oversight. It would be recalled that similar disgraceful conducts were exhibited by some Members of Parliament in the 8th Parliament during the election of the Speaker as well as other subsequent occasions. Much as PNAfrica petitioned Parliament for the situation to be addressed to forestall its recurrence, nothing was done and our peMMon never saw the light of day.”
“We, therefore, call on the Rt. Hon. Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin— who has been widely acknowledged for his legislative experience and leadership—to take swi[ and decisive action. Those responsible for the chaos must be held accountable to ensure that such incidents do not recur and that parliamentary proceedings maintain the dignity they deserve,” said the PNAfrica.
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