CHRAJ Wades Into Bribery Saga

By Richard Kofi Attenkah The bribery allegation saga, which has stoked fires in Parliament, leading to members of the Appointment Committee pointing accusing fingers at one another, would simply not die down. This is because, when one thought that all was calming down, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has waded into […]

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By Richard Kofi Attenkah

The bribery allegation saga, which has stoked fires in Parliament, leading to members of the Appointment Committee pointing accusing fingers at one another, would simply not die down.

This is because, when one thought that all was calming down, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has waded into the fray, saying it is ready to investigate the  bribery allegation if the leadership of the House fails to do so.

Mahama Ayariga, Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central, on Friday, dropped a hint that Mr Boakye Agyarko, Minister of Energy, had attempted to bribe members of the Minority MPs serving on the Appointment Committee to facilitate his approval.

According to Ayariga, each of the members received GH¢3,000, but they returned the money when they realised that it was meant to influence their decision on the nominee, saying they initially thought the money was their sitting allowance.

Speaking to Joy News channel on Multi TV on Monday, the CHRAJ boss, Joseph Akanjoluer Whittal, called on the Speaker of Parliament to carry out an independent probe into the matter.

Mr. Akanjoluer Whittal continued that CHRAJ would step in if nothing is done to unravel the truth surrounding the bribery allegation.

“The Commission knows the Members of Parliament (MPs) are public officers [and] allegations of corruption and dishonesty are matters that we can investigate, but as an arm of government, the Commission would also prefer to defer to Parliament to rise up to the task,” he said.

The statement of the CHRAJ boss comes after Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, told members of the committee during the vetting of the Minister-designate for Monitoring and Evaluation, Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, yesterday, that he would support a full scale investigation into the bribery saga.

Stating that the scandal has undermined the integrity of Parliament, and required that a full scale investigation was necessary to get to the bottom of the matter, Haruna Iddrisu said he will support an investigation that borders on the integrity of individuals in Parliament, as well as the institution of Parliament.

Continuing, the CHRAJ boss pointed out that his outfit has the power to investigate the issue, because it concerns Members of Parliament, who are public officers, stressing that because Parliament is the second arm of government, it is important it carries out its investigation in a transparent manner, failing, which, he said, the Commission would rise up to its constitutional duties.

“We will be dealing with the Speaker; we know three MPs have petitioned [and] we will see to what extent they are positioned, to see whether what they are putting in place will not work,” he said.

“These are honourable men and women, and we expect them to do the right thing. The Speaker will ensure that the rules and the laws of the country are met,” he said, adding, any committee set up has to act transparently.

“This is not an issue of having an in-camera meeting; the matter affects the integrity of Ghana [and] I will call upon the Speaker to ensure that the people he appoints [and] the nature of the Committee should be transparent,” he said.

Earlier, Samuel Okudjeto Ablakwa, MP for North Tongu and a member of the Minority side, had backed the claim of his colleague, Mahama Ayariga, MP for Bawku Central.

He confirmed to Captain Smart, host of Adom FM’s flagship programme Edwaso Nsem yesterday, in an interview, that indeed GH¢3,000 each was paid to members of the Minority group on the Appointment Committee to influence their decision.

Okudjeto Ablakwa mentioned the names of three other MPs on the Minority side who are members of the Committee, who he claimed also received their GH¢3,000 from the Minority Chief Whip, Alhaji Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, but later returned it.

The three MPs are Sampson Ahi, MP for Bodi, Eric Opoku, MP for Asunafo South and Nii Lante Vanderpuye, MP for Odododiodoo.

The former deputy Minister of Education called for an urgent parliamentary inquiry into a bribery saga, to help restore public confidence in members of the law-making House.

“If this matter is becoming murky, muddy water and controversial, then let’s look into it,” Okudjeto Ablakwa stressed.

The North-Tongu MP was not happy about why Parliament always finds it difficult to investigate allegations of wrong doings against its members, even though it is one of the three arms of government.

He explained that in the Executive, ministers have had to resign after they are implicated in wrongdoing, and in the Judiciary, some judges lost their jobs after a bribery scandal implicated several High Court judges.

Continuing, he noted that in 2008, the then MP for Asikuma/Odoben/Brakwa, P.C Appiah-Ofori, made claims that MPs received $5,000 to approve the sale of government’s 70% shares in Ghana Telecom to Vodafone.

He mentioned that MP for Nadowli/Kaleo, Alban Bagbin, claimed in 2014 that MPs are corrupt, and also talked about the RLG saga, where the CEO, Roland Agambire, almost succeeded in linking MPs to a scandal.

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