Minority members of parliament on Monday January 30, 2017 held a crunch meeting over a developing bribery scandal citing the recently sworn-in minister for energy Boakye Agyako.
Last Friday, Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga alleged Mr Agyako, then a ministerial nominee tried bribing Minority members on the Appointment Committee of parliament with an amount of Gh¢3000 each through the committee’s chairman Joe Osei-Owusu.
The money was to facilitate their approval of Mr. Agyarko’s nomination.
According to Mr. Ayariga who said he did not receive any money, details surrounding the sharing of the money reached him through his chief whip Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak.
Both Alhaji Mubarak and Joe Osei-Owusu have denied knowing anything about the money purported to have exchanged hands although Mr. Ayariga insists.
Sunday January 29, Mr Ayariga together with two other parliamentarians, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, MP for North Tongu and Alhassan Suhuyini MP for Tamale North petitioned the Speaker of Parliament, Professor Mike Oquaye to conduct an internal enquiry into the allegations.
Read petition below
Rt. Honourable Speaker,
REQUEST FOR INTERNAL ENQUIRY INTO ALLEGATION OF ATTEMPTED BRIBERY OF SOME MEMBERS OF THE APPOINTMENTS COMMITTEE OF PARLIAMENT BY A MINISTERIAL NOMINEE
This is a joint request by Hon. Mahama Ayariga (MP) Bawku Central Constituency, Hon Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa (MP) North Tongu Constituency and Hon Alhassan Sayibu Suhuyini (MP) Tamale North Constituency to you the Rt. Hon Speaker of Parliament.
We jointly request you to carry out an internal enquiry into the veracity of the claims made by us in the allegation of attempted bribery of the Minority Members of the Appointments Committee of Parliament by a ministerial nominee.
We, the three (3) Members of Parliament, will subject ourselves fully to the processes of the enquiry.
Please, accept our highest regards.
Thank you.
——-Signed——
Hon Mahama Ayariga (MP)
Bawku Central Constituency
——-Signed——-
Hon Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa (MP)
North Tongu Constituency
——–Signed——–
Hon Alhassan Sayibu Suhuyini (MP)
Tamale North Constituency
Meanwhile the minority on the committee is expected to state their position on the matter as a whole.
The meeting held before today’s vetting according to ghonenews.com is to discuss a plan of action, possibly a consensus to boycott the process.
The bribery allegations have unsettled many who have heard of it.
Sinour States man, K.B Asante told Accra based Class fm “It is an issue of public interest and an action should be taken to put things right.”
He further stated that Mr Boagye Agyako should recuse m=himself of the position and make way for investigations to begin and conclude on the matter.
“It is a good idea that he should leave the scene. You cannot work with a minister with so many allegations especially when we have so many important things to do. So yes, here, the president should step in [but] not in the public domain. But he should call the minister and ask him: ‘In the circumstances, will you please resign so that we go into this matter and if everything is fine I will find another thing for you to do?’ In my opinion, yes, he should call him not publicly but quietly and say please I expect you to resign on this matter so that you can clear your name,” he emphasized.
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