First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joe Osei-Owusu
Ghana’s First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr Joe Osei-Owusu (Joewise) has called out Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu and Minority Chief Whip Muntaka Mubarak, describing them as “liars” for claiming he unilaterally, in “bad faith”, determined a date for the vetting of the President’s Chief Justice nominee, Justice Anin-Yeboah, despite the failure of the leadership of the house to reach a consensus on discussions for the abridgement of time for advertising in the national dailies for the submission of memoranda from the public as well as agreeing a date for the vetting and presentation of a report thereof.
“That is most irresponsible”, the Chairman of Parliament’s Appointments Committee told Accra-based Joy FM in an interview on Monday, 16 December 2019 after the Minority released a statement signed by Mr Iddrisu in which it alleged that Mr Osei-Owusu was rushing the vetting process in favour of his “friend”.
According to the Bekwai MP, the vetting timetable announced by the Clerk of Parliament was the one “suggested” by the Minority Leader during his [Osei-Owusu’s] consensus-seeking meeting with the other side so as to accommodate Parliament’s recess by the end of this week.
He denied claims that the announcement for the submission of memoranda, is, by the rules of the house, done for, at least, two weeks as demanded by the Minority, daring: “Let them point to a rule being breached”.
Mr Osei-Owusu said his conduct as Chair of the same committee, which, in the past, vetted ministerial nominees with whom he has some relationship, including friends like Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh and Mr Samuel Atta Akyea, makes the Minority’s concern about a case of conflict of interest in the matter of the CJ nominee, a moot one.
Responding to Mr Osei-Owusu’s tirade, Mr Muntaka said: “It’s shocking. I’m so disappointed with the First Deputy Speaker”, adding: “Maybe he was sitting on his ears” during the meeting, because “when the Minority Leader said that [agreeing to a week of memoranda announcement], he said let’s consult further. It is the basis upon which the meeting ended”.
“He is calling the Minority Leader and I (sic) liars[u1] ; he’s the biggest liar because … yes, the Minority Leader said that: ‘Can we try and abridge it to one week? And then let’s consult further’”.
