Development economist and University for Development Studies (UDS) lecturer, Prof Michael Ayamga-Adongo, has accused the NPP Minority in Parliament of deliberately disrupting parliamentary proceedings to punish Ghanaians over the 2024 election results.
He believes the Minority’s conduct in recent sittings, including heckling and disregard for the Speaker’s authority, is calculated and not spontaneous.
“It’s like the Minority is trying to punish Ghanaians for the outcome of the 2024 elections—that if we got that result, then we’ll make sure Parliament doesn’t function,” he said.
“Those actions are deliberate. I don’t think they are spontaneous responses to anything. It is a deliberate attempt to either engage in a disturbance in Parliament or heckling,” he added while speaking on Accra-based GHOne TV on Thursday, June 12.
Prof Ayamga-Adongo’s comments follow a heated exchange in Parliament on Tuesday, June 10, when the Minority clashed with First Deputy Speaker and Akatsi South MP, Bernard Ahiafor.
The clash erupted after Mr Ahiafor accused the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Health Committee, Dr Nana Ayew Afriyie, of abusing his privilege to make an urgent statement on the ongoing strike by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA).
He subsequently directed the Marshal of Parliament to walk out the Effiduase-Asokore MP—a move the Minority strongly resisted.
Although Speaker Alban Bagbin has since pardoned Dr Afriyie, Prof Ayamga-Adongo criticized Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin for failing to maintain discipline on his side.
“If any member of a Minority side engages in any particular behavior, it is the leader of the side who should take responsibility,” he stated.
