Okudzeto Ablakwa resigns from Parliament’s Appointments Committee
The Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has resigned from Parliament’s Appointments Committee.
In a letter dated March 30, 2021, addressed to the Speaker of Parliament, Mr. Ablakwa said he took the decision “after days of careful reflection and thoughtful considerations.
It is unclear why the NDC MP, known for his intense questioning of nominees, is stepping down from the committee.
“I resigned as a matter of principle and it is personal,” he told theghanareport.com.
When asked if the decision was a result of pressure from his party, Mr. Ablakwa declined to comment, insisting it was a personal decision.
Mr. Ablakwa said his resignation was with immediate effect.
This means he will not be present during the vetting of President Akufo-Addo’s nominees for deputy ministerial positions.
The Speaker has reportedly requested a meeting with Mr. Ablakwa over his decision.
Mr. Ablakwa’s resignation comes after the approval of controversial ministerial nominees of President Akufo-Addo.
The minority MPs’ latest unanimous approval of Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta has sparked agitations among the NDC and its supporters.
The minority (NDC) MPs received public backlash from supporters of the party after some nominees of president Akufo Addo were passed to become ministers even though the minority MPs on the Appointments Committee rejected them.
National Communication Director of the party, Sammy Gyamfi, took the minority leader, Haruna Iddrisu; Minority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mohamed Mubarak; and the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin to the cleaners accusing them of betraying the party for allowing some of the nominees to be passed.
But in a release dated March 29, 2021, the General Secretary of the party, Johnson Asiedu Nketia said the “Minority leadership, the Party leadership as well as the Council of Elders have engaged in extensive consultations with the view to adopt a common position based on the exigencies of the situation”.
He has therefore called for calm and circumspection from members.
“I, therefore, urge all members to remain circumspect when the need for reaction arise. The NDC Parliamentary Caucus and FEC will be fully briefed accordingly.”