Ghana’s Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has suspended four lawmakers following a violent altercation during the vetting of ministerial nominees. The confrontation took place on Thursday evening when members of the vetting committee clashed, damaging parliamentary furniture while screening nominees from the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC).
The incident was triggered by accusations from NDC members, who claimed that their opposition counterparts in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) were deliberately delaying the vetting process with overly lengthy questioning.
NPP parliamentary leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin became a focal point for his extended grilling of Samuel Nartey George, the nominee for communications minister, which lasted over five hours. The prolonged questioning led to intense verbal exchanges, which ultimately escalated into a physical altercation.
On Friday, Speaker Bagbin condemned the incident, calling it a “gross affront to the dignity of Parliament” and “blatant contempt of the House.” He announced that four lawmakers—Rockson Nelson Etse Kwame Dafeamakpor, Frank Annor-Dompreh, Alhassan Sulemana Tampuuli, and Jerry Ahmed Shaib—would be suspended for two weeks.
A special seven-member committee has been assigned to investigate the incident and will present its findings within 10 days. Additionally, any lawmakers found responsible for damaging parliamentary property will have the cost deducted from their allowances.
This marks the third violent altercation in Ghana’s Parliament in the past four years. Earlier incidents included fights during the election of a new speaker in 2021 and disruptions over the electronic transaction levy bill later that same year.
