Speaker’s action was borne out of hatred- OB Amoah

The Member of Parliament for Akuapem South Constituency in the Eastern Region, Hon. O B Amoah has accused the Speaker of Parliament for deliberately dismissing the motion filed by the Minority calling for investigations into President John Mahama’s Ford gift saga.

He argued that the action of Rt. Hon Edward Doe Adjaho Doe Adjaho was borne out of bitterness and hatred for the Minority after they voted to reject the proposal by the Electoral Commission (EC) to change the date of the presidential and parliamentary elections to November 7 instead of December 7.

Amoah who said the Speaker had been his close friend indicated that prior to the day Parliament voted on the motion Speaker had expected the Minority to vote in favour of the motion because according to him (Speaker) “it was a straight forward matter.”

Speaking on Oman FM’s National Agenda, Hon. O B Amoah stated that Minority’s decision did not sit well with the Speaker and therefore decided to use the opportunity to settle his personal grudge with them.

“He was not happy with us when we voted against the motion to change the date of the general elections. Because prior to the day we voted we had a conversation and he said it was a straight forward matter.”

Rt. Hon. Doe Adjaho on Thursday shocked the Minority and the entire nation when he dismissed the motion seeking for a bi-partisan inquiry into the controversial Ford Expedition gift saga and instead directed them to pursue the case at the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice, (CHRAJ).

According to the Speaker, various legal and constitutional provisions indicate that the body mandated to deal with such issues is the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice, (CHRAJ).

He also listed a number of such cases against public officials which he said were investigated by CHRAJ hence Parliament has no business in looking into President Mahama’s Ford saga.

“Ordinarily, having regard to standing order 79(4), I would have returned the motion to the member in whose name it stands as being inadmissible. But the motion was tied contemporaneously to the request for the recall of the house under Standing Order 38(1) which derives from article 123 of the constitution and therefore leaves me with no discretion in recalling the house. Standing order 79(4) also provides as follows: Every notice shall be submitted to Mr. Speaker who shall direct that it be printed in its original terms or with such amendments as he shall direct or that it be returned to the member submitting it as being inadmissible.”

“I am therefore unable to admit this motion. I hereby direct the clerk to return the motion to the member in whose name it stands in line with standing order 79 (4).”

However, responding to the Speaker’s decision, Hon. OB Amoah disagreed with him, saying “clearly Speaker demonstrated bias because is a member of the governing National Democratic Congress.”

According to him, parliament risks collapse if the Speaker continues to exhibit bias in such matters.

Background

President Mahama admitted receiving a Ford vehicle gift worth about $100,000 in 2012 from a Burkinabe contractor, Djibril Kanazoe after investigations by journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni. The gift was considered an inducement as Kanazoe was subsequently awarded a contract to construct the Dodo Pepeso-Nkwanta road construction project.

This was after he had constructed a fence wall for a land belonging to Ghana’s Embassy in Burkina Faso for nearly half a million dollars.

President Mahama was harshly criticized for accepting the vehicle he claims to have put in the state’s pool of vehicles. Critics alleged that the revelation indicates a case of conflict of interest and called for his impeachment of the president.

The youth wing of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) petitioned the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice, (CHRAJ) to investigate the possible conflict of interest.

The President has since responded to CHRAJ’s letter requesting information on the incident, and has rubbished the allegations leveled against him.

According to Doe Adjaho, upon receiving the motion “I sought to satisfy myself to find out whether this matter is under investigation before the Commission on Human Rights and Administration Justice.”

Story By: Michael Creg Afful

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