The Minority in Parliament has admonished the government to refrain from the “persecution” of its leader, and allow him to carry out his constitutional mandate without any intimidation.
Addressing a press conference on Friday, the Deputy Minority Leader and Member of Parliament for Asokwa Constituency, Patricia Appiagyei, has described as “cynical, diabolical, and constitutionally perverse scheme” the referral of the Minority Leader, Osahen Alexander Kwamena Afenyo Markin, to the Privileges Committee by Speaker Alban Bagbin.
Madam Appiagyei said the action was “not parliamentary procedure,” but a “political persecution”. “It is not the enforcement of Standing Orders. It is the weaponisation of Standing Orders,” she stated.
She accused the Speaker and Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga of targeting the Minority Leader for performing his lawful duties.
ECOWAS delegation controversy
Madam Appiagyei recounted events from July 22, 2025, when the Majority Leader allegedly attempted to amend Ghana’s ECOWAS Parliament delegation while the Minority Leader was unwell. “His aim was surgical and sinister: remove Hon. AfenyoMarkin and insert me in his place,” she said. She added that she was not consulted, neither did she consent to that action. She emphasised, “At no point have I expressed any intention to replace my Leader.”
Despite her objections, she alleged, the Speaker sent a formal letter to the ECOWAS Parliament on July 25, 2025, excluding the Minority Leader and her name. Madam Appiagyei described the move as “not an administrative error”, insisting, “It was diplomatic orchestration.”
“The consequences were immediate. On September 8, 2025, ECOWAS sent a diplomatic mission to Accra to address Ghana’s ‘flagrant violation’ of Article 18 of the Supplementary Act and later rebuked Ghana for attempting to normalise the illegality,” she said.
Defending the rule of law
Madam Appiagyei argued that the Minority Leader was constitutionally justified in refusing to comply with the unlawful resolution. Quoting St. Augustine of Hippo, she said, “Lex iniusta non est lex, an unjust law is no law at all.” She stressed that under Articles 1, 3, and 41 of the 1992 Constitution, the Minority Leader “was not being insubordinate; he was being a patriot.”
Minority Leader, including threats from NDC officials, attempts by the Attorney-General’s Office to discredit him, and social media campaigns labeling him as “insubordinate.”
She further asserted that the referral to the Privileges Committee was retaliatory. “This is not parliamentary oversight. This is vindictive persecution, exactly one day after the Minority Leader led our side at the Appointments Committee to expose the NDC Government’s dishonourable attempt to secure parliamentary vetting for the then Chief Justice nominee,” she said.
The Minority has called for the immediate withdrawal of the Privileges Committee petition against Osahen AfenyoMarkin. The group also demanded a public apology from the Speaker and the Majority Leader to both ECOWAS and the people of Ghana “for the diplomatic embarrassment caused”.The Caucus further insisted that Osahen AfenyoMarkin’s name be restored to Ghana’s ECOWAS delegation, that the coordinated persecution by NDC operatives and the AttorneyGeneral’s Office cease, and that NDC National ViceChairman Chief Sofo Azorka be prosecuted for publicly threatening the Minority Leader.
Madam Appiagyei further affirmed that the NPP and the Minority stand with Osahen AfenyoMarkin not as a matter of party loyalty, but because the rule of law demands it
