Kennedy Agyapong, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak and Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, says he is unfazed about his invitation to the Privileges Committee of Parliament.
The controversial MP faces the committee in camera on Tuesday for his alleged verbal attack on Parliament.
Mr Agyapong described the Minority Whip, Muntaka Mubarak, as “dumb” for referring him to Parliament’s Privileges Committee over the purported insults.
Speaking to journalists in Parliament yesterday on the issue, the Assin Central MP expressed his readiness to appear before the Privileges Committee because he has enormous respect for the House.
He, however, took on the minority whip and National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Asawase, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka for asking in Parliament to haul him before Privileges Committee over the matter.
According to the Assin Central MP, the minority chief whip is a ‘dumb’ MP because he did not listen to the tape very well before asking Parliament to drag him before the Privileges Committee.
He explained that nowhere in his commentary did he attack parliament.
“Muntaka is a dumb MP that is why he just raised the issue in Parliament without listening to the content of the tape.”
He, therefore, appealed to members of the Privileges Committee to patiently listen to the tape.
The embattled legislator said, “He is a dumb MP and now I will take him on one on one. Let him go and tell the privileges committee that I (Kennedy Agyapong) say he is a dumb MP because he did not even listen to the content of the tape and just dragged the matter before the committee.”
Mr. Agyapong explained that he made the said statements while responding to comments by an executive of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Ashanti Region on the Anas’ exposé.
“Where did I insult Parliamentarians? The guy rather insulted me and I was responding that Parliament does not give me money… I said because we have made Parliament soft that is why the guy could go on Happy FM and talk that way. Is it an insult to Parliament?”
Mr Agyapong reminded minority chief whip of what he (Muntaka) told him to tell the Minister for Communications, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful during her vetting.
He said he had apologized to the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, for his unsavory comments against him.
“You know the Majority Leader is my very good friend. He is one of four the MPs whose cell phone numbers I can easily recollect. I can recollect the phone numbers of the Majority Leader, Alex Afenyo-Markin, Anthony Karbo and K.T. Hammond off-hand,” he said.
Mr. Agyapong is reported to have described Parliament as “useless” for maintaining Osei-Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu as its Majority leader.
Meanwhile, the Minority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak, has stated that he would fully cooperate with the Privileges Committee on Tuesday.
“I have received an invitation from the privileges committee to provide all the evidence that I have, and to appear on the 26th, which is Tuesday. So I have already presented all the evidence that I have.”
He added that an apology from Kennedy Agyapong would settle the matter.
“If he appears and he apologises, I am sure it will end there, but if he appears and he is going to flex there, then obviously it will go through the full haul,” he added.
By Thomas Fosu Jnr