NewzThe Minority in Parliament has filed a fresh motion seeking the establishment of an ad hoc committee to investigate the reported $1.7 billion loss at the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod). The move comes as the Minority continues to demand answers over the reported losses and rejects suggestions that it should rely solely on the Public Accounts Committee to investigate the matter. The Caucus has also challenged GoldBod Chief Executive Officer Sammy Gyamfi to substantiate allegations of extortion against Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, accusing him of attempting to divert attention from the GoldBod losses.
Speaking after a Minority Caucus meeting, Old Tafo MP and Member of Parliament’s Economy Committee, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, said the fresh motion has been submitted to the Speaker for consideration. He said the Minority intends to pursue an ad hoc committee because it believes that is the appropriate mechanism to establish the circumstances surrounding the reported losses. “It is an ad hoc motion, an ad hoc committee that is going to help the Minority to be able to unravel the circumstances to which this loss came by.
We will not bend the rules or we will not bend our strategy for anybody’s convenience,” he said. Mr Assafuah dismissed suggestions that the Minority must use the Public Accounts Committee to conduct the inquiry. “Nobody teaches the Minority as to how we should go about its work.
The tools that are available to Parliament are well placed within our hands to use any of the tools that we so deem fit to use,” he said. He argued that Article 103 of the 1992 Constitution, together with relevant parliamentary Standing Orders, provides the basis for Parliament to establish committees to investigate matters involving ministries, departments and agencies. He specifically cited Orders 204, 212, 213, 262 and 263, saying they provide for the establishment of an ad hoc committee and empower it to call persons who may assist with its work.
“It is our contention that the motion that Parliament, that is the Minority, has sent to the Speaker of Parliament for the Speaker of Parliament to consider within this week is something that is much more important,” Mr Assafuah said. He maintained that the Caucus would not alter its strategy simply to accommodate what he described as the convenience of others. The Minority in Parliament has thrown its weight behind Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, challenging GoldBod Chief Executive Officer Sammy Gyamfi to substantiate allegations of extortion against him.
The Caucus says it will not be distracted from its efforts to investigate what it describes as $1.7 billion in losses at the Ghana Gold Board and insists Parliament has several constitutional and procedural mechanisms available to conduct the inquiry. Speaking after a Minority Caucus meeting where the allegations featured prominently, Old Tafo MP and Member of Parliament’s Economy Committee, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, said the Caucus would pursue its preferred approach regardless of whether it was convenient for others. Mr Assafuah was responding to suggestions that the Minority should use the Public Accounts Committee to investigate the matter.
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