Deputy Minority Leader Declines Nomination to ECOWAS Parliament

The Deputy Minority Leader in Parliament, Patricia Appiagyei, has rejected her nomination to the ECOWAS Parliament in place of the Minority leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin.

In a memo to the Speaker of Parliament on Tuesday, she said she was neither consulted nor given a chance to give her consent to serve on the reconstituted delegation of Ghana.

She, therefore, sees the development as a calculated effort to cause division between the Minority leader and herself.

“I wish to respectfully decline my inclusion on the ECOWAS Parliament delegation and state that, in my considered opinion, the proposed change is not desirable. The Minority Leader is a duly designated member with an unexpired term, and any attempt to remove him from that position without cause or consensus is both procedurally irregular and politically regrettable.”

She cited a breach of ECOWAS law in her appointment.

According to her, there is no legal or procedural justification for the removal of the Minority Leader and the attempt to replace him on the delegation.

“Furthermore, consistent with ECOWAS Parliamentary practice, a sitting Member cannot be removed from the delegation unless the Member voluntarily resigns, is removed from office, appointed to the Executive or as a Judge, or otherwise becomes ineligible under the governing rules.

“The Minority Leader has not vacated his seat, nor has he been disqualified under any such criteria. Any action outside these parameters is completely against the Supplementary Act and the rules of the ECOWAS Parliament and may be rejected by the ECOWAS Parliament itself.”

Acknowledging the underlying gender parity fueling her appointment to the regional body, she affirmed that it must be pursued within the bounds of due process, consultation, and internal consensus.

Source: https://opemsuo.com/author/hajara-fuseini/