Ghana’s Parliament is facing calls to launch an inquiry into its own ratification of the 2015 AKSA Emergency Power Agreement, after evidence in a United States criminal case implicated some of its members in alleged bribery payments.
The People’s Alliance for Governance and Accountability (PAGA), in a press statement, said the institution’s image is under serious scrutiny and that Parliament must rise to clear its name.
“18 Members of Parliament served on the Mines and Energy Committee during the Third Session of the Sixth Parliament in 2015, the period when the AKSA Emergency Power Agreement was reviewed, approved and duly ratified. That alone should concern Parliament as an institution,” the statement said.
PAGA argued that because Parliament ratified the agreement, the public deserves answers to four key questions: what information was put before Parliament at the time; who participated in the approval process; whether any Member of Parliament received money or benefits in any form connected to the transaction; and whether any person used his or her public office to influence the approval.
The group warned that Parliament’s credibility as an oversight institution is at stake.
“Parliament must demonstrate that it can investigate allegations concerning its own members with the same seriousness with which it scrutinizes the conduct of other public officials,” it said.
PAGA called on the leadership of Parliament to establish an appropriate committee or mechanism to examine the allegations and summon all relevant persons and institutions, insisting the exercise must not be partisan.