Apologise for calling me 'bully pulpit' - Ablakwa tells Oppong Nkrumah

Accra, Ghana - A heated exchange erupted in Ghana's Parliament when Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Chairman of the Parliamentary Assurance Committee, demanded a retraction and apology from Works and Housing Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah for calling him a "bully pulpit".

The controversy centered on the Minister's description of Ablakwa's role as a "bully pulpit" amid concerns over delays in completing housing units for victims of the Akosombo dam spillage.

Ablakwa deemed the comment inappropriate and requested a formal apology.

However, Minister Oppong Nkrumah pushed back, questioning whether he could not address the issues raised and defend himself against attacks.

Ablakwa maintained that a retraction and apology were necessary, citing parliamentary standing orders as justification for his demands.

“Honourable Minister you will be well advised to watch your diction. You will be well advised. You will be well advised. I will not take that. To suggest that I am using this position as a bully pulpit.”

“You have to retract that because that is not what I am doing here. You must retract and apologise. I am well within my standing orders. You have to retract that. You have to retract and apologise,” he stated.

However, Oppong Nkrumah countered by asking if it was fair for the Committee Chairman to accuse him of being dishonest and evasive without giving him the opportunity to defend himself or present an alternative perspective.

He stressed that if he is accused of lacking sincerity or diverting attention from the issue, he should have the chance to respond and set the record straight.

“It is okay for the Chairman of the committee and the committee to accuse the Minister of being insincere, of deflecting without more and I do not have the right to answer or to share a different view?”

“…If you choose to accuse me of insincerity, of introducing red herrings of deflecting that is not about the people. That is you accusing me and if you are accusing me I must have a right to respond," he said.

Source : Lead News Online