The minority yesterday boycotted sittings of the appointments committee of Parliament.
The walkout took place at the dying embers of the vetting of minister designate for Foreign Affairs Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.
The Minority leader prayed the committee to suspend proceedings after spending more than 5 hours on the Minister designate for Foreign Affairs Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.
The prayer of the Effutu MP was as a result of a directive by Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin for the Appointments Committee to be reconstituted as a result of the chaos that marred proceedings the day before.
The speaker had also suspended four MPs: Nsawam-Adoagyiri MP and minority Chief Whip Frank Annoh-Dompreh, South Dayi MP and majority Chief Whip Rockson Nelson-Dafeamekpor, Gushegu MP Alhassan Tampuli and Weija-Gbawe MP and second deputy minority Chief Whip Jerry Ahmed Shaib over the chaos.
All the suspended MPs with the exception of Alhassan Tampuli were members of the Appointments Committee.
Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga however disclosed the Speaker had rescheduled the meeting of the committee on selection to next week Monday after a brief engagement with him following the directives and thus the committee was properly constituted to continue its work.
An intervention by deputy minority Chief Whip Habib Iddrissu to play the speaker’s audio on the matter was turned down by the chairman of the committee. Consequently the chairman of the committee Bernard Ahiafor ruled proceedings were to continue.
Ranking Member Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin thus decided to recuse himself from the proceedings citing the speaker’s directive. The development led to the discharge of the nominee Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa with Afenyo-Markin and members of minority walking out never to return.
The Committee went on to vet many more nominees including minister of state designate in charge of government communications Felix Kwakye Ofosu.
In all the 10 nominees vetted for the day including Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa have been recommended for approval by consensus regardless of the absence of the Minority.
