Joe Ghartey
The five-member ad-hoc committee set up by parliament to look into the bribery allegation against the leadership of the Appointments Committee of Parliament is now ready to prepare its final report and present it to the plenary on Wednesday, March 29, subject to approval by the Business Committee.
It met yesterday and accordingly took fresh evidences from some members who applied to present them (evidences).
DAILY GUIDE on Tuesday reported that work of the ad-hoc committee chaired by the former second deputy speaker of parliament and New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Essikado/Ketan, Joe Ghartey, had stalled because some members had decided to present fresh evidences to the committee in relation to the bribery allegation against the chairman of the Appointments Committee, Joseph Osei-Owusu.
The committee was finalising its work until the application for fresh evidences was made and for that matter, the committee sat yesterday to admit those evidences.
A communication from the Public Affairs Directorate of Parliament and signed by Kate Addo, the acting director, said yesterday’s sitting took evidences from three witnesses but did not mention the names of those witnesses.
The committee was set up by the speaker of parliament following allegation by a member of the Appointments Committee and National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga, that the then Minister-designate for Energy, Boakye Agyarko, gave each of the minority members on the Appointments Committee an amount of GH¢3,000 to facilitate the approval of the nominee.
The Bawku Central MP said the alleged bribe was channeled through the Chairman of the Appointments Committee, Joe Osei-Owusu, and the minority chief whip, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka; but the two leaders in parliament have vehemently denied such allegation.
The then minister-designate has also denied giving any bribe to facilitate his approval after the minority MPs had warned that they would not endorse his approval for tagging the former president, John Mahama, as corrupt when he appeared before the Appointments Committee.
Members of the public are very much anxious of the outcome of the ad-hoc committee’s work; and now the nation has been assured that the report will be presented to the House on March 29.
By Thomas Fosu Jnr
