Deputy Minority Leader Patricia Appiagyei has returned GH¢70,000 sent to her by the Majority Chief Whip, saying she does not want to personally benefit from a parliamentary process involving the vetting of members of the Majority leadership.
The Asokwa MP said she was uncomfortable accepting the money because she had not been informed of its source.
She also explained that she did not want to receive any financial benefit connected to the vetting of Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga and Deputy Majority Leader Zanetor Agyemang Rawlings.
In a memorandum dated September 2 and addressed to Minority Chief Whip Frank Annoh-Dompreh, with Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin copied, Mrs Appiagyei instructed that the money be returned to the Majority Chief Whip.
“It is with regret that I return the amount of seventy thousand cedis (GH¢70,000.00) allocated to me as an advance of money from the Majority Chief Whip of Parliament of Ghana. I am returning the money on the basis of the fact that, primarily, I do not know the source of the money being given to me,” she stated.
She further explained that her decision was consistent with the Minority Caucus’ position on the ongoing vetting process involving three Supreme Court nominees.
“It is also not my intention to extort any money from any of the above judges,” she added.
Mrs Appiagyei reaffirmed her support for the Minority Caucus’ position and noted that her decision mirrored that of Mr Afenyo-Markin, who had also returned the money allocated to him.
The development comes amid the Minority’s boycott of the vetting of three Supreme Court nominees after the Caucus objected to the procedure adopted by Parliament’s Appointments Committee.
The nominees are Justice Sophia Rosetta Oduokuwa Bernasko Essah, Justice Edward Amoako Asante and Justice Anthony Forson Jnr.
Minority members walked out of the committee proceedings on August 27, citing what they described as inadequate notice for the vetting.
Mr Afenyo-Markin had earlier challenged the procedure, arguing that the committee had departed from established parliamentary practice.
“The procedure that has been adopted is at variance with the orders of the House. How can you ask us to vet Supreme Court judges with three days’ notice?” he queried.
He maintained that nominees should be given adequate notice before the vetting process.
“The standard practice is to give fourteen days’ notice, advertise in the newspapers before the vetting is done,” he said.
Mr Afenyo-Markin also referred to concerns previously raised by then Minority Leader Dr Cassiel Ato Forson over a similar process involving Supreme Court nominees.
He stressed that the Minority’s objection was directed at the procedure and not the nominees themselves.
“To the nominees, we are not against your nomination; we are against the procedure, and we cannot be part of this,” he said.
Mrs Appiagyei’s decision to return the GH¢70,000 adds another dimension to the Minority’s objections, with the MP citing both the uncertainty surrounding the source of the funds and her unwillingness to personally benefit from the parliamentary process.
