Dr. Tony Aidoo, a stalwart of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and former Ghanaian Ambassador to the Netherlands, has criticized Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, stating that his self-perception as a gentleman is at odds with his aggressive behavior.
According to Tony Aidoo, Afenyo-Markin’s aggressive behaviour at the Appointments Committee of Parliament is very characteristic of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) breed of politicians, saying the Minority Leader is suffering a cognitive dissonance.
Reacting in a discussion of the recent vetting chaos in Parliament, Tony Aidoo said, “Afenyo-Markin’s behaviour, excuse me to say, he is having a very tough case of cognitive dissonance.”
He added, “Cognitive dissonance in socio-psychological terms, says that when your cognitive elements appear to conflict, you are compelled to restore consonance by either eliminating or devaluing one of the elements that you believe is busy. And that is how Afenyo-Markin has been behaving.”
According to Dr. Aidoo, he does not think Afenyo-Markin has realised yet that his party is in the minority so he maintains “a very, very boisterous language… and incredible enough, he will be the first to say ‘I’m a gentleman, I’m reasonable’ and that kind of thing and yet his behaviour doesn’t correspond to the rhetoric that he wants the public to hear.”
Sharing an anecdote of an incident that occurred to him, he narrated, “Let me give you one historical test case involving me, JH Mensah, and Kwamena Bartels. In 2008 when Rawlings appointed me Deputy Minister of Defence, JH Mensah wrote to the then chairman of the Appointments Committee, Ken Dzirasah, that Ken Dzirasah must subpoena my personal confidential file from the University of Cape Coast.
“Ken asked him why, he said he just wants my file to be subpoenaed. He was a member of the appointment committee, he couldn’t have the decency to confront me with any allegation during my vetting session because he left and when he was going he said ‘you people go ahead and vet him, I have already voted against him.’ That’s not an honourable behaviour. You don’t know me, you wanted my personal file, it wasn’t given to you but you have made up your mind that you will vote against me. That’s not the behaviour of a parliamentarian.”
Dr. Tony Aidoo stated that Kwamena Bartels, the former MP for Ablekuma North, accused him in Parliament of being disrespectful. Aidoo mentioned that Bartels claimed he had insulted the then Speaker of Parliament, Justice D.F. Annan, at the Speaker’s office in Osu Castle. However, Aidoo pointed out that there was no such office for Annan at the Castle.
He said DF Annan would later console him that while he heard the misrepresentation, as Speaker he could not take part in the debate and to cure the false accusation Tony insulted him or even quarrelled with him.
“Now, the reason why I’m narrating this is the haughty behavioural orientation of NPP politicians, the presentation that they know everything and yet, like I said, when politicking is going on, their arguments are just sheer sophistry… escaping from the question, interposing lies to justify their actions, and passing the buck has been very characteristic of NPP politicians. They never accept that they are wrong. It’s always the other side, the other person is wrong, like Afenyo-Markin targeting the clerk of this committee, saying all kinds of things which the poor lady doesn’t have a chance on the floor or cannot take part in a debate at the appointment committee to answer. That is not the expected behaviour of a parliamentarian. You can’t do that.”
