Former Deputy Energy Minister and former Member of Parliament for Sekondi Constituency, Andrew Egyapa Mercer, has cautioned against attempts to prevent the Minority in Parliament from expressing their views during the vetting of Chief Justice nominee, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie.
Speaking in an interview on JoyNews on Monday, Mr. Mercer described the appointment of a Chief Justice as a “political process” that must allow room for open parliamentary debate.
He stated that Parliament is a House of record, and so if the Minority has any position, it is only proper that they put it on the record so that posterity can have the benefit of what transpired during the vetting of the Chief Justice.
According to him, the Majority side should not attempt to impede the Minority from presenting their position, as doing so undermines transparency and delays the vetting process.
“Because there’s already a precedent since 1992, the Majority should allow the Minority to make their point. To want to prevent them from doing so, to seek to put impediments in their way, is what is dragging the process and I don’t think that is helpful for the Ghanaian people who are spending precious man hours watching the vetting,” he added.
He stressed that while the Majority ultimately has the numbers to determine the outcome, the essence of democracy lies in allowing all sides to be heard.
“So allow them to make their point, that is the beauty of democracy,” he remarked.
His comments follow a heated exchange between the Minority and Majority Leaders during the vetting of Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, President John Dramani Mahama’s nominee for Chief Justice.
The Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, accused the Majority side of acting in bad faith after Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga objected to his description of the nominee as a “disputed nominee.” Mr. Ayariga argued that the remark was inappropriate and politically charged.
In response, Mr. Afenyo-Markin defended his comments, insisting that the Majority was attempting to stifle legitimate parliamentary debate and accountability. He maintained that the Minority had every right to express reservations about what it considers a politically influenced nomination.