Fred Agbenyo has criticised Afenyo-Markin over his conduct during the vetting
Member of Parliament for Guan, Fred Agbenyo, has criticised Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin over his conduct during the vetting of Chief Justice nominee, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie.
Speaking in an interview with TV3 during a break in the vetting on Monday, November 10, 2025, which was marked by a series of exchanges between Afenyo-Markin and Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga, Agbenyo accused the Minority Leader of engaging in unnecessary theatrics and allowing personal sentiments to undermine parliamentary decorum.
“It’s expected of us as Members of Parliament to be disciplined and do things right. Nobody comes here to perform theatrics or prove to the world that he’s the best. He’s only been looking to challenge and shout,” Agbenyo said.
He claimed that Afenyo-Markin’s behaviour stemmed from his dissatisfaction with the removal of former Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Torkornoo, whom he described as Afenyo-Markin’s “darling girl.”
“That’s the woman he has always stood by. He believes she should have remained in office. He’s even challenged her removal in court. That’s why I’ve chosen to describe her as a ‘darling girl.’ Because of that, he sits here doing all this. We are not here to do his bidding,” Agbenyo remarked.
He added that members who disagreed with the process were free to walk out rather than disrupt proceedings.
“If they don’t want to be a part of it, they can walk out. Nobody is forcing them to be here,” he said.
The comments followed a heated exchange between Afenyo-Markin and Ayariga during the vetting. The confrontation began when Ayariga objected to Afenyo-Markin’s attempt to make opening remarks, arguing that the matter had already been debated in Parliament.
Earlier, Afenyo-Markin had described Justice Baffoe-Bonnie as a “disputed Chief Justice nominee,” prompting Ayariga to demand an apology, saying the vetting was not a courtroom hearing.
In his defence, Afenyo-Markin maintained that the removal of former Chief Justice Torkornoo was “cloaked in unacceptably opaque circumstances,” calling it unfair, unconstitutional, and lacking due process.
Ayariga, however, described the remarks as “inappropriate” and urged the committee to focus on assessing the nominee rather than revisiting political grievances.
The confrontation led to a brief suspension of proceedings.
Watch a livestream of the vetting below:
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