According to Ablakwa, who was adamant on the allegations that the Ministry of Trade and organizers of the awards collected monies ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 from the expatriates to enable them to sit close to President Akufo-Addo at the awards, he cannot be intimidated by the directive.

“I am not one to be intimidated in the discharge of my constitutional duties, therefore, I can’t wait to appear before the Privileges Committee or any other Committee as the Speaker may so direct considering that I am of the fullest conviction and the clearest of conscience that the facts and the truth are and have always been on our side,” he added in a Facebook post.

[contextly_sidebar id=”MRDc5W4UTTCW6c5pz3mdj4WVZb6u6ktq”]The Speaker of Parliament on Tuesday referred the findings of the 5-member ad-hoc committee to the privileges committee tasking the committee to investigate the source of the allegations and other related matters.

This follows the adoption of the 146-page report of the committee chaired by Majority Chief Whip, Kwasi Ameyaw Cheremeh, which exonerated the Trades and Industry Ministry and organizers of the awards of any wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, the Minority has said the adopted report is far from the truth and thus, did not participate in the debate on Tuesday.

And Ablakwa, who was one of the main witnesses in the case believes the Majority is trying to suppress the Minority’s views. adding that such an action “can only amount to a travesty in Parliament [and] is a pathetic addition to the countless comedy of contradictions and conflicting accounts that Government has been engaged in since this scandal erupted.”

Ashim Morton to sue Ablakwa, Muntaka?
In a related development, the Millennium Excellence Foundation, the organization that hosted the awards, has said it is considering a court action against two minority Members of Parliament over the cash-for-seat allegations.

According to the lawyer for the foundation, Peter Zwennes, the two MPs – Okudzeto Ablakwa and the Minority Chief Whip Muntaka Mubarak, should be stripped of any parliamentary immunity in order for them to be dragged to court, because their actions were “irresponsible.”

“The propagation of such irresponsible and destructive falsehood made against my client should not be availed the cloak of parliamentary immunity which, if had been said in anywhere else in the open, will certainly be giving rise to a meritorious court action in defamation. The foundation is still considering its options and they are still available to us,” the lawyer stated at a press conference in Accra on Tuesday.

Below is Ablakwa’s full post:

Rather a farcical fatal tragedy that the Majority in Parliament could not suppress partisan interest in favour of their conscience and the national interest in the Cash for Seat Scandal.

Thankful to God, the proceedings of the Special Committee were conducted in the full glare of the public making today’s attempted cover-up in Parliament laughable and an exercise in futility.

Ghanaians have always been discerning and know Founder Chairman Ambassador President Ashim Morton cannot take President Akufo-Addo’s place. More fundamentally; Ghanaians know it cannot be right, ethical, moral, legal nor conscionable to sell access to the President of Ghana to the highest bidder.

Today’s charade which can only amount to a travesty in Parliament is a pathetic addition to the countless comedy of contradictions and conflicting accounts that Government has been engaged in since this scandal erupted.

I am not one to be intimidated in the discharge of my constitutional duties, therefore, I can’t wait to appear before the Privileges Committee or any other Committee as the Speaker may so direct considering that I am of the fullest conviction and the clearest of conscience that the facts and the truth are and have always been on our side.

Truth stands.

Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa

MP, North Tongu

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post Cash-for-seat: Ablakwa unfazed by report referral to Privileges C’ttee appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

This is because it claims most of the MPs have not read the 146-page report that has been put before them to be debated.

[contextly_sidebar id=”bvkkFWjvdfTWflhyP9TmAMtB6EQ1AatF”]The Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, held that under the circumstances, his side could not take part in the deliberations.

He argued that per the Standing Orders of Parliament, no motion shall be debated until at least 48-hour sitting days have elapsed.

“I have a difficulty that we are suspending the Standing Orders on this matter especially seeing that I got my copy of the report only this morning. All members got their copies only this morning… so why the rush?”

“In the interest of transparency and accountability, this matter cannot be railroaded through Parliament and I am sorry, Mr. Speaker, that if the Chairman wants to proceed, he knows our position… of the 146 pages, I together with many other members are yet to satisfy and read through it thoroughly in order to make meaningful contributions to the debate.”

Majority to proceed with debate

The Majority in Parliament has however decided to go ahead with the debate on the report.

The Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, said the Minority MP’s non-cooperation on the matter was borne out of their lack of understanding of Parliamentary standing orders.

Controversy over ‘Minority report’

The bi-partisan Committee probing the extortion claims was enveloped by controversy when its Minority members decided to prepare and leak a separate report that indicted some stakeholders of interests in the probe, including the Ministry of Trade and the organizers of the awards scheme, the Millennium Excellence Foundation.

The Minority side of the Committee, comprising of Dr. Dominic Ayine and James Avedzi, concluded that, the Ministry of Trade engaged in multiple infractions including breaches of the public financial management law and multiple ethical violations.

It also said the Millennium Excellence Foundation, among other things, presented forged evidence to the Committee.

Dr. Ayine subsequently called for the withdrawal of the already laid report so that a composite report will be presented to Parliament.

Prior to the walkout, there were reports that the Minority was planning to boycott the debate of the report.

Background of “cash for seat” saga

The Ministry of Trade, which partnered the event organizers, Millennium Excellence Foundation, is alleged to have charged between $25,000 and $100,000, to enable expatriates to sit close to the President at the awards ceremony.

The allegation was first made by the Minority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak in Parliament in December 2017.

Mr. Mubarak said the fees charged at the Ghana Expatriate Business Awards were not approved by Parliament, adding that the monies were also not accounted for in the Internally Generated Funds [IGF] of the Ministry’s accounts.

The allegation was further reinforced by Mr. Ablakwa, who suffered verbal assaults from Deputy Minister for Trade and Industry, Carlos Ahenkorah over the matter.

The Ministry of Trade said it played no role in determining prices for seats at the event, and clarified that it only facilitated the implementation of a new initiative by the Millennium Excellence Foundation.

But the Ministry after an order from the President to probe the matter clarified that an amount of GHc2, 667,215 was realized from the event. This was made known only after the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, had asked the Trade Minister, Alan Kyerematen, to investigate the matter and report to him.

The organizers of the Awards had also explained that no one paid to sit close to the President and that the amount was raised from sponsorship through a fundraising at the event.

Parliament subsequently formed a five-member bi-partisan committee to investigate the matter.

The Committee held several public hearings and a few in-camera sessions that featured all parties named in the allegation, and those who made the allegation.

The Trades Ministry and the Foundation maintained their innocence in the matter and insisted that due process was followed in soliciting funds for the awards scheme.

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By: Duke Mensah Opoku/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Minority storms out of debate on Cash-for-Seat c’ttee report appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.