Minority boycotts vetting of Akufo-Addo ministers; wants the House to rise

Leadership of the Appointments committee[/caption] The minority members on the Appointments Committee of Parliament Wednesday boycotted the vetting of some deputy ministers appointed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in order to push for the Parliament House to rise for recess. Deputy Minority Leader James Klutse Avedzi told 3FM parliamentary correspondent Mercydalyne Lokko Tuesday that notwithstanding an agreement by the House to go on recess Wednesday, the majority side of the House is making attempts to delay it to Friday. According to him, the consensus to go on recess on Wednesday was informed by the fact that there is no business available for the House to conduct but the majority side wants the deputy ministers appointed by the President to be vetted before they rise by Friday. Apparently not happy with the tactics by the majority side of the House, the minority MPs on the Appointments Committee resolved Wednesday not to be part of the vetting of Andy Appiah-Kubi who is the deputy minister designate for Railways Development. “No member of the minority on the Appointments Committee is there [at the vetting]. Most of their members on the Appointment Committee are in the main chamber. It’s just the majority side which conducting the vetting,” Mercydalyne reported. About five deputy ministers-designate are expected to be vetted Wednesday by the Committee but the minority side on the Committee have rather gone to the main chamber of the House where some MPs are delivering statements on the floor, our correspondent reported. The House is expected to also approve deputy ministers-designate who have so far been vetted and approved by the Committee, our correspondent added.

We’re taken by surprise A member of the minority side on the Committee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, told journalists that Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, served notice last week that what had been agreed on by the Business Committee and Appointments Committee was that the House would go on break and resume in May to continue the vetting. “We did serve notice… that we cannot continue to vet after Tuesday so let nobody say notice was not served. We served notice and we asked that the agreement which we all reached at the Appointments Committee and the timetable which we agreed on” is followed, he explained. “What has happened is that the majority has sought to take us by surprise and we had expressed concern about the way we were being treated as far as the minority side is concerned. We were not being supported to out diligent work. “If you check the publication that went out. the group that is being vetted this week, they were supposed to be vetted in May; a month from now so why the rush? This is a very serious exercise,” Mr Ablakwa stated By 3news.com|Ghana]]>