Veteran journalist Kwesi Pratt Junior has criticized the Member of Parliament for Effutu and Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, over what he described as “comedic” conduct during the ministerial vetting process.
Kwesi Pratt expressed dissatisfaction with the manner in which the NPP leader has conducted himself, labeling some of his conduct and questions as preposterous and unnecessary.
Speaking on the issue on Accra-based Metro TV, he pointed to instances where Afenyo-Markin requested Education Minister-designate Haruna Iddrisu to speak Twi to demonstrate fluency during his vetting appearance.
“You know that your standing orders prescribe the language that ought to be used in Parliament. So, that language should be used in all parliamentary committee sittings. Unfortunately, I saw the Minority Leader use a language that is not prescribed, and his excuse was, ‘Oh, we’ve seen in your CV that you speak a number of languages, and we are testing your proficiency in those languages.’
“Where did that come from? Is that why we set up the vetting committee? Has it become the new Ghana Institute of Languages? What is this? The vetting committee should stick to its mandate. Its mandate is to find out whether persons nominated by the president are qualified to be ministers and to assess their intellectual ability to execute the functions assigned to them. Stop the comedy. I think the comedy sometimes is too much,” he lamented.
He further recounted a specific instance where a nominee was questioned about church attendance and then asked to sing hymns.
“I witnessed one vetting process where someone nominated as a minister was asked, ‘Do you go to church?’ The person said, ‘Oh, yes, I go to church.’ ‘Oh, you must therefore know how to sing hymns.’ ‘Oh, I sing hymns.’ ‘Can you sing a hymn for us?’
“I mean, this is preposterous. And this is happening in front of all of us. Is that how to vet ministers? They come and sing Methodist hymns, and you approve them. Are you vetting them as choir masters or what? Absolutely strange,” the veteran journalist remarked.
Kwesi Pratt urged the vetting committee to remain focused on its mandate and avoid straying into irrelevant matters.
Comments
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