The Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) will not interfere in parliament’s investigation of the bribery allegations that engulfed its Appointments Committee, Joseph Whittal, the Commissioner has said.
“For now we take the position that we should allow Parliament which has got its own processes of investigation, to show to the people of Ghana that they are determined to root out corruption,” he said.
“Let us give them an opportunity through which we will always trigger our mandate,” he added.
Nonetheless, the Commission will keenly monitor the process to ensure transparency, he pointed out.
He said the commission understands a petition had been forwarded to the Speaker and “we are following the steps he will take pursuant to that petition and we will also follow the proceedings to determine whether there is transparency and whether they are actually addressing the issue of corruption as the people of Ghana will want them to…We want to give preference to the second arm of government for now.”
The Member of Parliament for Bawku Central and Member of Parliament’s Appointments Committee, Mahama Ayariga last week accused Energy minister, Boakye Agyarko of attempting to bribe the minority members of the committee, to clear him following his edgy vetting—but they rejected it.
According to him, the energy minister’s bribery attempt was made through the chairman of the committee, Joseph Osei Owusu which was given to the minority caucus by its chief whip, Muntaka Mubarak.
He had since petitioned the speaker of Parliament, Mike Oquaye to constitute a committee to investigate his claim.
The chairman of the committee, Osei-Owusu and Minority chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak have both denied the allegation, describing it as preposterous.
