Suhuyini votes against Deputy Education Minister-nominee over bribery allegations

• Alhassan Suhuyini says he will kick against the approval of Gifty Twum-Ampofo nomination

• He decision comes at the back of a corruption watch report which accused the MP of bribing delegates

• He said the MPs response suggests that her conscience is dead to the threat of bribery and corruption in Ghana’s democracy

Alhassan Suhuyini, the Tamale North MP, has indicated his decision to vote against the approval of Gifty Twum-Ampofo as the Deputy Education Minister.

According to him, the nominee who is also the Abuakwa North MP was not able to convince the committee members on bribery allegations levelled against her prior to the governing NPP primaries in 2020 within her constituency.

The MP was accused of bribing NPP delegates with a flat-screen TV set each, and GH¢1500.

At her vetting on Thursday, June 10, 2021, she was asked about a CDD-Ghana corruption watch report which accused her of bribing NPP delegates but Suhuyini was not happy with her response.

He said Twum-Ampofo’s response suggests that her conscience is dead to the threat of bribery and corruption in Ghana’s democracy.

“When her attention was drawn to the fact that in 2016 when she was less than a year old as an MP from the classroom and perhaps not as resourceful, that she alleged and criticized her competitor, the then NDC candidate for Abuakwa North, Ambassador Victor Smith, of attempting to buy votes in her constituency by giving two NPP executives GH¢1000 each to join his campaign, she categorically denied that under oath.

“I’m therefore disappointed in the nominee’s lack of candour and what seems to be a conscience that is dead to the threat of bribery and corruption to our democracy,” he said in a post on his social media timeline.

Alhassan Suhuyini further stated that his decision to vote against the nomination of Gifty Twum-Ampofo, Deputy Minister-designate for Education, has been communicated to the chairman of the Appointments Committee.

Read his post below:

I have just respectfully communicated my decision to vote against the nomination of Hon. Gifty Twum-Ampofo Deputy Minister-Designate for Education, to the chairman of the Appointments Committee.

My decision is borne out of my dissatisfaction with the nominees handling of questions regarding a CDD’s Corruption Watch assessment of the last NPP parliamentary primaries.

In that report, the nominee is said to have admitted to offering/bribing NPP delegates in the Abuakwa North constituency with GH¢1500 and a flat-screen TV each.

She repeated during her vetting that her conduct, which she downplayed, was not meant to induce and indeed did not induce the delegates.

When her attention was drawn to the fact that in 2016 when she was less than a year old as an MP from the classroom and perhaps not as resourceful, that she alleged and criticized her competitor, the then NDC candidate for the Abuakwa North Ambassador Victor Smith of attempting to buy votes in her constituency by giving two NPP executives GH¢1000 each to join his campaign, she categorically denied that under oath.

I’m therefore disappointed in the nominee’s lack of candour and what seems to be a conscience that is dead to the threat of bribery and corruption to our democracy.