The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has cited Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin for contempt and referred him to the Privileges Committee for further investigation.
The decision follows a petition from Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga after Afenyo-Markin opposed a move excluding him from Ghana’s ECOWAS delegation.
Presiding over proceedings on Thursday, November 27, the Speaker told the House, “I refer the complaint against the Minority Leader to the Privileges Committee and report to the House.”
He urged the Committee to act with professionalism and neutrality, emphasizing restraint from MPs during the process. “I urge the Committee to discharge its mandate with decorum and impartiality. I urge MPs to refrain from public commentary,” he added.
On November 11, Ayariga petitioned the Speaker to refer Afenyo-Markin to the Privileges Committee for allegedly defying a parliamentary resolution that removed him from Ghana’s ECOWAS Parliament delegation.
According to Ayariga, the ECOWAS Parliament initially refused to swear in Ghana’s delegation after Afenyo-Markin appeared in Port Harcourt despite his replacement on the team. He said the issue was only resolved after Ghana threatened to withdraw entirely from the ECOWAS Parliament.
In his petition, Ayariga described Afenyo-Markin’s actions as a breach of parliamentary privilege and called for disciplinary measures.
