The Member of Parliament for New Juaben South, Michael Kofi Okyere Baafi, has publicly addressed the dramatic events that unfolded during the Appointments Committee’s sittings on January 30 and 31.
According to the legislator, the chaos that erupted was the only viable strategy left for the Minority in Parliament to prevent the Majority from conducting a vetting process of certain ministerial nominees without adequate public scrutiny.
The confrontation, which began as a disagreement between members of the Majority and the Minority on the Appointments Committee, quickly escalated into a chaotic scene.
Tempers flared, leading to violent clashes that resulted in significant damage to parliamentary property. Consoles, cables, and tables were destroyed as tensions boiled over, shocking many observers and raising serious concerns about parliamentary decorum and governance.
In response to the unprecedented fracas, a Parliamentary Committee was swiftly established to investigate the incident, with the aim of identifying those responsible and determining appropriate measures to prevent such occurrences in the future.
The investigative committee has been tasked with reviewing video footage, taking testimonies from involved parties, and ultimately making recommendations to restore order and decorum in legislative proceedings.
Speaking during an engagement with his constituents in Koforidua, Michael Kofi Okyere Baafi took the opportunity to shed light on the events that led to the chaotic scenes.
He explained that the Minority’s decision to disrupt the proceedings was a last resort, necessitated by concerns that certain key ministerial nominees were being vetted without sufficient transparency.
According to Okyere Baafi, had the Minority exited the room, the Majority, with their numbers, would have continued the vetting process unchallenged. This, he argued, would have deprived the Ghanaian public of important information about Ablakwa and other nominees.
“And because we were few, there were only seven members of the caucus there and so the only way out for us was to leave the place and if we had left, people wouldn’t have known Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa was there because they were going to vet him that night.
“So all the questions that we asked, we wouldn’t have had the opportunity to ask the questions in the morning. So you have to understand us.
“The only way out for us was to stay and make the place ungovernable because if we had exited, they would go on because they had the numbers and so understand us. I apologise unreservedly.”
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