Osei-Owusu wants appointment committee reviewed

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January 30, 2017 11:01 AM

According to the chairman, this will ensure help conclude investigations of the scandal to enable the committee to carry out its duty smoothly

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The Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu has said he will call for a review of the committee after a bribery allegation was leveled on Energy Minister Designate, Agyarko by Mahama Ayariga.

According to the chairman, this will help conclude investigations of the scandal to enable the committee to carry out its duty smoothly.

The Bawku Central member of Parliament, Mahama Ayariga, on Friday, January 27 accused Mr. Agyarko, then a Minister nominee, of attempting to bribe the ten minority members on parliament’s Appointments Committee with GHc3000 each, in a bid to lure them to approve him as the Energy Minister.

The allegation came hours after the Minority had refused to support the approval of Mr. Agyarko and Yaw Osafo Maafo. Concerns were raised over some statements the two nominees made before the committee during their vetting.

Mr. Ayariga alleged that the money was given to the Minority Chief Whip, Mubarak Mohammed Muntaka by the Chairman of the Appointments Committee, Osei-Owusu for onward disbursement; a claim, both the Chairman and Muntaka subsequently rubbished.

Speaking to Accra-based Citi FM, Joseph Osei-Owusu said, the option of impressing on Ayariga to answer questions on his allegations at the committee sitting will be impossible since he [Osei-Owusu] who was implicated by Ayariga in the bribery allegations has to chair that sitting.He added that “By our standing orders, I am the Chairman of that committee and by our standing orders, I don’t think that Ayariga will get justice if my committee is to try him. That is why I am doing away with that suggestion and looking at going to court.”

“My only challenge now is that we have postponed consideration of some members for appointment for so long and I’m not sure it is fair to them to postpone sitting again. Otherwise I would have refused to sit until those matters are resolved and whoever took money in whose name is brought out.” He emphasized.

He further disclosed that he was engaging his lawyers to possibly seek redress in the court of law to clear his name.

The minority chief whip in parliament, Mubarak Muntaka, also rebuffed claims that he received money from the chairman of the appointments committee, Joe Osei-Owusu, and distributed same to minority members of the committee to influence them to approve the nomination of Boakye Agyarko, the energy minister-designate.

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