Otiko Afisah Djaba
The Appointments Committee of Parliament will today continue with the vetting of Ministers-designate amidst the bribery allegations by a member of the minority caucus on the committee.
The vetting which should have taken place last week has now been scheduled for this week, and those scheduled to appear today are Minister-designate for Monitoring and Evaluation, Dr Anthony Akoto Osei; Minister-designate for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Otiko Afisah Djaba and Minister-designate for Regional Reorganisation, Dan Botwe.
The nominees, who would be appearing tomorrow, are the Minister-designate for Lands and Natural Resources, Peter John Amewu; Miniter-designate for Employment and Labour Relations, Ignatius Baffour-Awuah and the Minister-designate for Works and Housing, Samuel Atta Akyea.
On Wednesday, February 1, Minister-designate for Communications, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful; Minister-designate for Sanitation and Water Resources, Joseph Kofi Adda and the Minister-designate for Roads and Highways, Kwasi Amoako-Atta, will also come under parliamentary scrutiny at the vetting
On Thursday, February 2, the Minister-designate for Transport, Kwaku Ofori Asiamah; Minister-designate for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovations, Prof Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng and Minister-designate for Railway Development, Joe Ghartey will also appear before the committee.
So far, 13 Ministers-designate, who were vetted by the Appointments Committee, have been approved by parliament.
They were subsequently sworn into office by the President Nana Akufo-Addo on Friday
Controversy however engulfed two of the nominees already approved by parliament, leading to the allegation by a member of the Appointments Committee that one of the affected nominees had tried to bribe them to approve of his nomination.
Some observers have also spoken about the long period of time used to vet the individual nominees.
Ahead of today’s vetting, a group calling itself Women’s Wing of the Young Patriots of Tema West constituency condemned the Women’s Wing of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for trying to tarnish the image of Otiko Afisah Djaba.
The NDC’s Women Wing had reportedly alleged that Otiko Afisah Djaba, NPP National Women’s Organiser, who has been nominated by the President, ‘encouraged’ Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong, to say sometime in 2016 that Charlotte Osei was only successful in being appointed the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission after she had granted sexual favours.
The Young Patriots, in a statement signed by its president, Adjoa Arthur, stated emphatically that the said statement made by the NDC Women was only “aimed at tarnishing the reputation of Madam Otiko Afisah Djaba.”
By Thomas Fosu Jnr