A tense exchange erupted on Wednesday, June 18, 2025, during the vetting of Supreme Court nominee Justice Hafisata Amaleboba, as a disagreement between the Chairman of Parliament’s Appointments Committee, Bernard Ahiafor, and Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin escalated in full public view.
The confrontation was sparked when Afenyo-Markin posed a question that Chairman Ahiafor ruled as repetitive, insisting it had already been addressed.
Interrupting the Minority Leader, Ahiafor directed that the nominee should not respond, citing procedural grounds.
A visibly irritated Afenyo-Markin pushed back forcefully.
“Chairman, if you want to find a way to stop this vetting, I will yield to you. Stop what you are doing. The whole country is watching. Stop what you are doing. If you want us to fold up, I am all for it, and we will discharge her and let us go,” he said.
He accused the chairman of deliberately obstructing the vetting process, stating, “If you are strategically planning that a Supreme Court nominee should not go through this, so be it, but this question is not out of order. I have done research and worked overnight, and I know what I am asking.”
Chairman Ahiafor stood his ground, firmly rejecting any suggestion of bias or intimidation.
“I have a short response to you. The public is not only watching me. They are watching all of us, and the jury is out there. I cannot be intimidated by you. I have an indomitable spirit. I still rule that the question has been asked and the nominee shall not answer this question again,” he stated.
The dramatic standoff highlighted growing tensions within the committee as it continues its scrutiny of President John Dramani Mahama’s Supreme Court nominee.
LIVE: Parliament’s Appointments Committee vets Justice Hafisata Amaleboba