Veteran Journalist Abdul Malik Kwaku Baako has accused Parliament of being a party to the growing public perception that it is a corrupt institution, as it has done very little to clear that view.
According to him, his checks reveal that in stances where Members of Parliament themselves have alleged corruption against Parliament, such as in the case of PC Appiah Ofori and Alban Bagbin, they left the allegation to die a natural death.
“In these two instances nothing really happened. In the PC Appiah Ofori case, even though the referral on that matter was captured in the hanzard, the matter never got to the Privileges committee to even investigate the issue. In regards to Bagbin’s allegation which became a huge bomb in this country, it appears the matter was left at the level of Leadership and not referenced to the Privileges committee and so nothing again happened there. These development obviously takes a lot from Parliament and it shows that the institution itself is also part of the problem.”
Kwaku Baako made the comment on Joy FM’s News analysis show News File Saturday while commenting on the allegation made by former Rector of Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) Dr Stephen Adei that MPs, take bribe before passing some important Bills into law.
He said the fact that Parliament has failed to act on Legislators who have made such accusations, is no excuse for anybody to make serious allegations against MPs or Parliament as an institution and not be asked to substantiate it.
“I think that with the standing that the Professor has, he must be able to give us something of evidencial value to support what he has said. Otherwise it will be free for all, floodgates must be opened for people to say whatever they want and get away with it.”
By: Kasapafmonline.com/Ghana
