Cash-For-Seat: "Critical Mass Of Allegations Borne Out Of Allegations, Defended By Allegations"

Kweku Baako has expressed disgust over the stance of the Minority in Parliament over the cash-for-seat report.

The Minority in Parliament walked out of the August House on Tuesday, February 6, 2018 after building a case that they had received the 145-page Committee's document and couldn't have enough time to peruse the report thoroughly for discussions to be held on it in the House.

Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, insisted that under the circumstances, his side of the House could not partake in the deliberations and so walked off.

Addressing the issue on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo', Kweku Baako described the Minority's action as pathetic and an exposure of their mischief.

According to him, they displayed sheer lack of concern because they adopted a deliberate strategy since the genesis of the issue to falsely accuse the Trade Minister and the Akufo-Addo administration.

Allegations borne out of Allegations

He explained that from the onset of the cash-for-seat controversy, people were made to believe it was an issue of "extortion" but today, it's "proven that their claims didn't make any sense from the beginning".

“It is deliberate. They don’t care. Look, create a critical mass of allegations borne out of allegations and defended by allegations…Whatever you do, subject it to any scrutiny; it doesn’t concern them”.

Though to him, the Minority have nothing to prove in the cash-for-seat saga, he however believes setting up a Committee to probe into the matter was a genuine cause.

He asked Ghanaians to develop "sufficient endurance"  and be unfazed by the Minority saying they have deliberately chosen to make a mountain out of a molehill just to accuse the government of being corrupt.

"...damn! They’ve been well [well] exposed. They have been exposed. They have no case, that’s why they’re playing such tricks," Kweku Baako said.

Some sections of the 145-page report said: “ ...After the hearings and the analysis and evaluation of the evidence adduced before it has come to a conclusion that there is no merit in the allegations leveled against the Ministry of Trade and Industry as contained in the motion and which culminated in the setting up of the Special Committee.”

“That the practice of some Members of Parliament trooping to the media to make allegations against highly placed officials must cease.

"The Committee is of the view that Members of Parliament who indulge in such acts ought not to be heard in Parliament if they should thereafter bring those matters before Parliament for Parliament to deliberate on the matter", the Committee further cautioned.

However, the Minority has expressed reservations over the document and issued a seperate report that some persons of interests in the probe, including the Ministry of Trade and the organizers of the awards scheme, the Millennium Excellence Foundation.

From the Minority's perspective, the details of their report perhaps conflict with the conclusions made in the Committee's document and so boycotted the debate.

"What Animal Is Minority Report?"

But speaking to host Kwami Sefa Kayi, Kweku Baako stated categorically that “there is only one report" and asked "what animal is Minority report?"

"It’s unheard-of. Come on! We’ve got to be serious in this country…Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic. I am so scandalized…The whole thing didn’t make sense from day 1 but I supported the setting up of the Committee” for the purpose of “education by negative experience; exposure of the mischief through a transparent process”, he added.