The vote of censure against the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has failed after less than 183 Members of Parliament voted to oust the embattled Minister.
136 National Democratic Congress MPs voted on Thursday to demand the removal of Mr Ofori-Atta falling short of the two-thirds constitutional requirement for the motion to pass through.
Prior to the vote, the New Patriotic Party MPs staged a walkout and decided not to support the motion of their colleagues from the opposition side of the House.
The Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Mensah, who led the walkout said his side cannot be part of a process that was baseless and politically motivated.
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu addressing the Speaker said the censure motion by the Minority caucus was pushed out of bad faith and only sought to embarrass the Finance Minister.
“You [the Minority] want us to follow you on this misadventure. Mr Speaker, like Pontius Pilate did, we will wash our hands of this”, he said.
The Minority caucus filed a motion of censure against the Finance Minister, accusing him of mismanagement of the economy, financial recklessness, conflict of interest, and gross mismanagement of the economy.
In his defence, the Finance Minister rejected allegations of conflict of interest and gross mismanagement of the economy levelled against him by the Minority caucus in Parliament.
He said he had done nothing wrong and described the allegations against him as witch-hunting.
“If I say I am innocent they [the minority] won’t believe me and if I ask for the truth and proof, they won’t be able to provide it. I have committed no crime,” Mr Ofori-Atta insisted on Thursday.
