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Former First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu, popularly known as Joe Wise, has strongly defended cash payments made to members of the Appointments Committee.
According to him, these payments cannot be classified as bribes, arguing that they served as a substitute for the mandatory sitting allowance, which had been withheld due to budgetary constraints.
In an interview with Accra-based Joy FM, he disclosed that between 2009 and 2016, when he was a Member of Parliament, the highest amount he received was 2,000 cedis, facilitated by the then Chief of Staff.
Explaining the situation, he stated:
From 2009 to 2016, when I was a Member of Parliament, and indeed the Chief Ribden also confirmed this, if at any point in time there were challenges in funding our work, the Chief of Staff would facilitate the work by releasing money to the clerk of the Committee to serve to members. If anybody thinks that this is corruption, I beg to differ.
He further added:
Often, we're supposed to get sitting allowances, but even to date, I don't remember the last sitting allowance I got from the last vetting we did. It may take about five, six months before you get paid, but when you do two, three, four, and nothing is coming, people are no longer interested in appearing to do the work.
His remarks come amid recent controversy surrounding alleged payments made to the Appointments Committee for the approval of ministerial nominees. This issue arose following a social media post by social activist and private legal practitioner, Oliver Barker-Vormawor.
However, Barker-Vormawor has since issued an unreserved apology after being summoned before the Appointments Committee on Wednesday, 29th January, to provide evidence for his claims.
He explained that his post had been misunderstood and emphasised that he had no intention of inciting dissatisfaction with the committee, reaffirming his respect for its members.