‘If they want a second round of vetting, I am ready for them’ – Okudzeto Ablakwa

The Minister nominee for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has expressed his readiness to undergo a second round of vetting by the Appointment Committee, should the committee deem it necessary.

“If they want a second round of vetting, I am ready for them,” he stated in a Facebook post following an abrupt end of his vetting by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin over some disagreement.

Nonetheless, the Minority Leader had already grilled him on several issues for some hours.

The sudden end to the vetting was occasioned by a ruling of the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, suspending four MPs who had participated in a chaotic incident, thereby affecting the composition of the Appointments Committee.

In the Facebook post, the North Tongu Member of Parliament said while he had made himself available, the committee, particularly the minority, chose to avoid him. “They had every opportunity when I appeared before them for vetting but they chose to run away,” he said, adding that during their eight years in power, they had failed to prosecute him, as they could find nothing against him.

Mr Ablakwa, who also serves as the chairman of the government’s Operation Recover All Loots (ORAL), defended his actions, stating that there was nothing wrong with opposing wrongdoing and advocating for public accountability. “It is not a crime for a Member of Parliament to patriotically and diligently seek the protection of public resources and state assets,” he remarked.

The MP emphasised his commitment to his constitutional oversight duties. He concluded by reaffirming his focus on President Mahama’s innovative reforms set to be implemented at the Foreign Ministry.