Daboya-Mankarigu MP, Shaibu Mahama, has accused the Minority in Parliament of attending the vetting of the next Chief Justice with a predetermined agenda instead of a genuine desire to seek answers.
Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on Monday, November 10, he said the conduct of the Minority during the proceedings proved they came to execute a plan rather than to engage meaningfully.
“Clearly, the Minority came not to ask questions, but it came with a script,” he said. “Unfortunately, they couldn’t mark the script.”
Mr Mahama defended the Majority Leader’s actions during the tense session, saying every step taken was within the rules of Parliament.
“Every single act that the Majority Leader did was clearly in line with the rules and regulations that govern the proceedings of Parliament,” he stated.
He explained that the Appointments Committee operates under the same procedural framework as the full House and that the Majority Leader acted appropriately when the Minority raised issues that contravened those rules.
“Indeed, the vetting committee or Appointments Committee is an extension of Parliament. So every rule that you will expect from Plenary is the same rule that is applied.
“And so if you raise issues that offend the rules, the Majority Leader has every single right to object to that,” he noted.
Mr Mahama said the Minority’s conduct showed they did not come prepared to contribute constructively.
“They did not come to the party,” he said. “When you ask a question whether they had, they had announced that they were not even coming for the vetting. Then suddenly they appeared with the script. That script, unfortunately, they couldn’t mark it.”
His comments follow a dramatic turn of events during Monday’s vetting of Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, the President’s nominee for Chief Justice.
The Minority Caucus boycotted the process after a heated exchange between Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin and Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga.
The disagreement forced a 30-minute suspension of proceedings.
When the session resumed, the Minority announced their decision to abstain and walked out, leaving the vetting to be conducted solely by Majority members of the Appointments Committee.
Mr Mahama maintained that the Majority’s handling of the situation was procedurally sound, insisting that the Minority’s walkout was driven more by politics than principle.