Vetting Chaos: ‘My dear husband ordered me to leave’ – Appointments C’ttee clerk

Gifty Jiagge-Gobah, the Clerk to the Appointments Committee, has revealed that she left the heated committee session on Thursday, January 30, 2025, after receiving a direct order from her husband to exit the premises.

The session, which was marked by intense conflict between the Majority and Minority sides over the nominations of Kwabena Mintah Akandoh and Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa for the positions of Minister for Health and Minister for Foreign Affairs, respectively, was fraught with tension.

Appearing before the Special Committee established by Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, on Wednesday, February 5, Mrs. Jiagge-Gobah explained that she found herself in a difficult position.

The majority members pressured her to administer the oath to the health minister-designate, while the Minority opposed the move.

Despite the pressure, Jiagge-Gobah emphasized that she would only act if directed by the Clerk to Parliament.

“They [Majority] kept screaming at me that I should let the nominee take the oath. The minority leader was also screaming at me [the video is there to prove everything]. So, at a point, I got hot so I started fanning myself and I took a seat.

“At the tail end when the majority leader was trying to engage both sides, I got three calls and a message from my dear husband Instructing me to leave the premises immediately; that order I took and I left. I exited through another door and went to stand in front of the clerk’s office,” she stated.

Meanwhile, the Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin on Tuesday, February 4, 2024, issued an apology to Gifty Jiagge-Gobah, Clerk of the Appointments Committee, following his recent outburst during a vetting session.

During the session, Afenyo-Markin accused the Clerk of bias and procedural lapses, with the Minority subsequently calling for her resignation over alleged unprofessional conduct.

Opposition MPs led by the Minority Leader claimed she displayed open allegiance to the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), compromising the neutrality of the vetting process.

However, after Adaklu MP and Minister for Roads and Highways, Governs Kwame Agbodza, urged an apology during a parliamentary sitting on Tuesday, Afenyo-Markin expressed regret for his remarks.

He admitted that his frustration led to an unprofessional reaction and acknowledged the need for decorum in parliamentary proceedings.