The Clerk to the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Gifty Jiagge Gobah, has opened up about the events that transpired during the chaos in Parliament at the ministerial vetting on Thursday, January 30, 2025.
Speaking at the public hearing of the special committee set up by Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, to look into the incident, on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, Gobah indicated that she had a feeling something bad was going to happen at the sitting.
She said that before the meeting commenced, both the Chairman of the Committee, Bernard Ahiafor, and Minority Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, gave instructions, however, immediately after the vetting for the day started, chaos erupted.
“After Hon. Nikpe was being taken, we realised that there was so much chaos going on. And as a clerk to the committee, it’s my duty to keep order and make sure things are done properly. It was brought to my attention that one of the doors had been ruptured. And because it was made of glass, I quickly informed the Marshal about it.
“But in the process… in my spirit, I wasn’t feeling right. And so, I yielded to the Holy Spirit and called my boss, the Clerk. I pleaded with him that wherever he was, he should please come to my aid because what was happening was beyond my control,” she said.
Jiagge Gobah said that her boss, the Clerk to Parliament, Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, was at an engagement but left to come to her aid.
She went on to say that when the Clerk to Parliament arrived, she met him in a different room and briefed him on the potential confusion that could arise and the bad feeling she had.
She said she was then called to come and swear in the minister-designate to be vetted, the Minister for Health-designate, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh.
She added that it was at that moment the fracas started.
“So, I rushed through where the cameras were, went through the door, and came in and stood by my chair. I didn’t hear the directive, I was only told about it. So, when I came, I was looking at the chair, wondering what the directive was, waiting for prompting. But then my boss, the Clerk to Parliament, was also there. And then the insults and disruption started.
“I was still standing. If you look at the video, you could see the shock on my face. And I was like, what is going on? But I was comforted and remained resolute, seeing my boss at the end trying to calm the two leaders. I then sent one of my secretariat ladies to seek guidance from my boss, who is the Clerk to Parliament. At that point, there was so much disruption. There were scuffles going on where I was, and there was so much screaming here and there,” she narrated.
She said she took a seat and watched as the commotion continued, with members of both sides of the committee still screaming orders at her.
At one point, she said she received a call from her husband, who told her to leave the vetting room.
She said she then left to wait for the Clerk to Parliament at his office to inform him that she was going home.
About the parliamentary fracas:
The altercation stemmed from the vetting of Minister of Health-designate Kwabena Mintah Akandoh and Minister of Foreign Affairs-designate Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.
The Minority Caucus accused the Majority Caucus of violating an agreement to vet only four nominees for the day, which led to heated exchanges.
Tensions escalated into physical confrontations, with microphones and furniture destroyed, and one of the vetting tables overturned.
Following the incident, the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, suspended four Members of Parliament (MPs) for two weeks on Friday 31, 2025. The Speaker, however, rescinded the suspension on February 4, 2025.
The affected MPs were Frank Annoh-Dompreh (NPP, Nsawam-Adoagyiri); Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor (NDC, South Dayi); Alhassan Tampuli (NPP, Gushegu); Jerry Ahmed Shaib (NDC, Weija-Gbawe).
Additionally, Speaker Bagbin directed the Clerk of Parliament to file a formal complaint with the Ghana Police Service for a criminal investigation into the MPs’ conduct.
The Speaker also declared that no public funds would be used to repair damaged parliamentary properties and that MPs found culpable would be surcharged for the repairs.
BAI/AE
Meanwhile, watch as Kwami Sefa Kayi begs NDC to return to Kokrokoo show
You can also watch videos from the Minority after chaos erupted during Mintah Akandoh’s vetting
