Parliament descended into disorder on Tuesday afternoon after a fiery exchange between the Majority and Minority over the use of the dispatch box triggered a full-blown standoff, compelling First Deputy Speaker Bernard Ahiafor to abruptly suspend proceedings.
The uproar erupted when Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin attempted to pose an urgent question from the dispatch box located on his side of the House. But Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga immediately objected, declaring that the Majority would not allow the Minority Leader to use the box under any circumstance.
In a bid to defuse tensions, Minority Chief Whip Frank Annoh-Dompreh intervened, arguing that the First Deputy Speaker had previously ruled in favour of Afenyo-Markin’s use of the dispatch box. He pressed Mr. Ahiafor to honour what he described as an earlier directive.
But the Deputy Speaker flatly denied ever making such a ruling. The situation quickly escalated when First Deputy Minority Whip Habib Iddrisu rose to his feet, insisting that Mr. Ahiafor had indeed made the pronouncement in the past.
That assertion visibly infuriated the Deputy Speaker, who challenged Habib to either provide evidence to back his claim or retract the statement. Undeterred, the Tolon MP held his ground, insisting that he had done nothing wrong and would not withdraw.
An increasingly frustrated Mr. Ahiafor issued a stern warning: if Habib failed to retract his claim, he would be referred to the Privileges Committee for making unsubstantiated statements in what he described as a “House of record.”
After nearly ten minutes of heated exchanges and mounting pressure from the Speaker’s chair, Habib reluctantly withdrew his comment, though the damage had already been done. The atmosphere in the chamber remained tense and deeply divided.
With tempers still flaring and parliamentary order all but collapsed, Mr. Ahiafor called time on the session, suspending sitting at exactly 3:22 p.m.
The incident marks yet another episode in the growing hostilities between the Majority and Minority factions, as procedural wrangling continues to paralyse key functions of the House.
