Mama Pat Fingers Speaker: Parliamentary Dictatorship

Madam Patricia Appiagyei, the Deputy Minority Leader, has accused the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin and Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga of leading a politically motivated collusion to ambush her into what she describes as a “cynical, diabolical, and constitutionally perverse scheme ever orchestrated within the precincts of Ghana’s Parliament.”

Patricia Appiagyei told a press conference last Friday November 28, 2025 that against her will and without her consent, and despite her official protest the Speaker Bagbin and the Majority Leader insisted on adding her name to Ghana’s delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament, with the diabolical agenda to kick out Osahen Alexander Afenyo-Markin, Ghana’s Minority Leader and a Deputy Speaker at ECOWAS Parliament.

She said though the New Patriotic Party (NPP) led Minority Caucus had presented its representatives to the ECOWAS Parliament and the list includes Afenyo-Markin, Mahama Ayariga a Majority Leader from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) side, decided to remove the name of Afenyo-Markin without any prior consultation or discussion whatsoever and that this removal of Afenyo-Markin’s name happened with he was on his sick bed in a hospital. She said Mahama Ayariga them put her name on the list as a replacement for Afenyo-Markin, again without her consent whatsoever.

Madam Patricia Appiagyei, affectionately called Mama Pat said when she officially wrote to Speaker Bagbin about the development and served notice that she was not interested in being a part of ECOWAS Parliament and that the Minority Caucus had decided that Afenyo-Markin should remain a member of the ECOWAS Parliament until the expiration of his tenure, Speaker Bagbin replied her saying Parliament does not need her permission or consent to make her a replacement for Afenyo-Markin.

“The Speaker’s reply, dated 25 July 2025, was as dishonest as it was dismissive. He acknowledged my concerns, then proceeded to ignore every substantive point I had raised. He defended a flawed process. He justified an action taken without consultation and he asserted that ‘Parliament is not procedurally bound to secure the prior consent of nominees. This is not parliamentary procedure. This is parliamentary dictatorship.

“Most egregiously, despite my written refusal, the Speaker sent a formal letter to the ECOWAS Parliament on 25 July 2025, deliberately including my name and excluding the Minority Leader’s. This was not an administrative error. It was diplomatic orchestration.

“I wrote again on 4 August 2025, demanding immediate rectification. I emphasised that the decision was a unilateral imposition by the Majority, that it usurped the Minority’s right to nominate our own representatives, and that it created a troubling precedent. I urged the Speaker not to legitimise this constitutional travesty. I was ignored again”, Patricia Appiagyei noted at a press conference last Friday, November 28, 2025.

Mama Pat said the incident caught the attention of ECOWAS Parliament and the sub-regional body had to intervene by drawing Ghana’s attention to the rules of that Parliament that Afenyo-Markin, as a sworn in Member, cannot be removed or replaced by his country’s Parliament or Government without his consent.

She said the ECOWAS Parliament had to follow up by sending a delegation to Ghana to resolve the needless mess that has been created yet, Speaker Bagbin and Mahama Ayariga were adamant.

“And now after orchestrating this constitutional travesty, after violating international law, after embarrassing Ghana before the community of West African nations Hon. Mahama Ayariga had the audacity to petition the Speaker to refer the Minority Leader to the Privileges Committee for performing his lawful duties as a sworn Member and Third Deputy Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament! This is not parliamentary oversight. This is vindictive persecution”, Mama Pat noted

She continued: “The timing is revealing. This petition came 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, Paul Baffoe-Bonnie. This is retaliation, pure and simple.

“And the Speaker rather than dismiss this absurd petition out of hand has entertained it, dignified it with a ruling, and referred it to the Privileges Committee. This is not leadership. This is complicity.”

The Deputy Minority Leader said Afenyo-Markin was not obliged to respect a resolution that remain unconstitutional and fundamentally flawed.

Below is the text of what Patricia Appiagyei said at the press conference.

STATEMENT TO THE PRESS BY HON. PATRICIA APPIAGYEI, MP FOR ASOKWA AND DEPUTY MINORITY LEADER ON THE UNLAWFUL REFERRAL OF THE MINORITY LEADER TO THE PRIVILEGES COMMITTEE

Friday, 28 November 2025

Members of the Press, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen:

I called you here today not merely as Deputy Minority Leader, but as a Member of Parliament who has been dragged unwillingly into what can only be described as the cynical, diabolical, and constitutionally perverse scheme ever orchestrated within the precincts of Ghana’s Parliament.

What we are witnessing is not parliamentary procedure. It is political persecution. It is not the enforcement of Standing Orders. It is the weaponisation of Standing Orders. And it is not about upholding the dignity of Parliament it is about crushing a fearless opposition leader who has consistently stood between this nation and constitutional anarchy.

Rt.Hon. Speaker Bagbin’s ruling yesterday, referring the Minority Leader, Osahen Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, to the Privileges Committee, is the culmination of a coordinated campaign of intimidation, harassment, and institutional abuse that began on 22 July 2025 when I was ambushed, without consultation or consent, into an illegal plot to remove my Leader from Ghana’s delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament.

Let me be abundantly clear: I protested, I objected, I refused and I was ignored.

THE AMBUSH OF 22 JULY 2025

On Tuesday, 22 July 2025, whilst the Minority Leader was unwell and receiving treatment, the Majority Leader, Hon. Mahama Ayariga, moved stealthily and clandestinely to amend Ghana’s ECOWAS delegation list. His aim was surgical and sinister: remove Hon. Afenyo-Markin and insert me in his place.

The Hansard captures his words with chilling clarity:

“Mr Speaker, when it comes to moving the Resolution numbered 19 of this House, I shall move pursuant to our Standing Orders for the amendment of the composition of the delegation, so that Osahen Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin is removed, and Hon Patricia Appiagyei is replaced as a member of the delegation…”

When objections were raised by the Minority Chief Whip and the Hon. Member for Bimbilla, the Speaker dismissed them without hesitation, declaring: “We are masters of our own Rules. So, the Resolution has been taken and then we will proceed on to the other Business.”

Masters of their own rules? More like masters of constitutional lawlessness.

MY IMMEDIATE AND UNEQUIVOCAL REJECTION

I was neither consulted nor did I consent to this scheme. The moment I learned of it, I acted decisively. On that very day, 22 July 2025, I wrote to the Speaker, stating in the clearest possible terms:

“Respectfully, I wish to place on record that I was neither consulted nor did I give my consent to be considered as a replacement for the Minority Leader… At no point have I expressed any intention to replace my Leader, and I am particularly concerned that this development appears to be a calculated effort to cause division between myself and my Leader.”

I called it what it was: procedural impropriety. I described it as deeply troubling. And I demanded that the resolution be stayed and rescinded, warning that proceeding would bring public embarrassment to the institution of Ghana’s Parliament.

I stood by my Leader then. I stand by him now. And I will stand by him tomorrow.

THE SPEAKER’S DISHONEST.

The Speaker’s reply, dated 25 July 2025, was as dishonest as it was dismissive. He acknowledged my concerns, then proceeded to ignore every substantive point I had raised. He defended a flawed process. He justified an action taken without consultation and he asserted that “Parliament is not procedurally bound to secure the prior consent of nominees.”

This is not parliamentary procedure. This is parliamentary dictatorship.

Most egregiously, despite my written refusal, the Speaker sent a formal letter to the ECOWAS Parliament on 25 July 2025, deliberately including my name and excluding the Minority Leader’s. This was not an administrative error. It was diplomatic orchestration.

I wrote again on 4 August 2025, demanding immediate rectification. I emphasised that the decision was a unilateral imposition by the Majority, that it usurped the Minority’s right to nominate our own representatives, and that it created a troubling precedent. I urged the Speaker not to legitimise this constitutional travesty.

I was ignored again.

ECOWAS PARLIAMENT REBUKES GHANA

The consequences were swift and humiliating. On 8 September 2025, the ECOWAS Parliament, through its Speaker, Hon. Memounatou Ibrahima, wrote formally to Speaker Bagbin, announcing a Parliamentary Diplomacy Mission to Accra to address Ghana’s flagrant violation of Article 18 of the Supplementary Act A/SA.1/12/16.

Please take critical note that, ECOWAS had to send a diplomatic mission to Ghana to avert our Parliament’s mind to the meaning of the rule of law. When the Majority Leader realised the gravity of the illegality, he scrambled to contain the damage. On 25 September 2025, he wrote to ECOWAS, asking that only four nominees be sworn in and promising to “address any outstanding issues” upon resumption from recess.

This was an involuntary confession that the Speaker’s actions were unlawful and required correction.

ECOWAS’s reply on 26 September 2025, signed by Acting Secretary-General Mr K. Bertin Some, diplomatically rejected the attempt to normalise the illegality, stating:

“It would have been preferable that your letter was signed by your Speaker or the Deputy Speaker… Parliament’s concern is to ensure a consensual list that complies with Article 18 of the Supplementary Act.”

Ghana’s Parliament has been rebuked by ECOWAS. Our country has been humiliated on the international stage. And the Speaker and Majority Leader are the architects of this disgrace.

THE HEIGHT OF HYPOCRISY

And now after orchestrating this constitutional travesty, after violating international law, after embarrassing Ghana before the community of West African nations Hon. Mahama Ayariga had the audacity to petition the Speaker to refer the Minority Leader to the Privileges Committee for performing his lawful duties as a sworn Member and Third Deputy Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament!

This is not parliamentary oversight. This is vindictive persecution.

The timing is revealing. This petition came 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, Paul Baffoe-Bonnie. This is retaliation, pure and simple.

And the Speaker rather than dismiss this absurd petition out of hand has entertained it, dignified it with a ruling, and referred it to the Privileges Committee.

This is not leadership. This is complicity.

THE LEGAL ARCHITECTURE IS CLEAR

Let me respectfully bring to the attention of the Speaker and the Majority Leader on the law they have violated.

Article 18.2 of the Supplementary Act A/SA.1/12/16 provides:

“A Representative shall be elected for a period of four (4) years from the date of the inauguration of the Parliament by the Chairman of Authority. Their mandate shall end on the last day of the legislature.”

Article 18.3 defines the exclusive grounds upon which a Representative’s seat may become vacant: death, written resignation, certified incapacity, resignation due to incompatibility, or removal by ECOWAS Parliament.

Hon. Afenyo-Markin falls under none of these categories. He has not died, he has not resigned, nor incapacitated. There has been no removal by ECOWAS Parliament.

Yet the Speaker and Majority Leader proceeded to remove him in flagrant violation of binding regional law, which under Article 75 of the 1992 Constitution takes precedence over domestic parliamentary resolutions.

The law is clear. The facts are undeniable. The shame is indelible.

THE CONSTITUTIONAL DUTY TO RESIST UNCONSTITUTIONALITY

Members of the Press, let me now address the fundamental constitutional question at the heart of this matter: Was the Minority Leader obligated to obey an unconstitutional resolution? The answer, rooted in both philosophy and constitutional law, is a resounding NO.

St. Augustine of Hippo, the great theologian and philosopher, declared centuries ago: “Lex iniusta non est lex” an unjust law is no law at all. A law or resolution that violates the Constitution and international treaty obligations is not merely defective it is null and void. It commands no obedience. It deserves no respect and those who resist it are not lawbreakers they are defenders of the Constitution.

The Minority Leader was constitutionally right to ignore the bogus resolution of 22 July 2025. Indeed, he was not merely entitled to do so he was duty-bound to do so. The fundamental law of our land, the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, makes this duty explicit and non-negotiable:

Article 1 (Supremacy of the Constitution) declares that the sovereignty of Ghana resides in the people, from whom all organs of government derive their authority, and that the Constitution is the supreme law of Ghana. Any law or resolution inconsistent with the Constitution is void to the extent of that inconsistency.

Article 3 (Defence of the Constitution) imposes a sacred duty on every citizen of Ghana to resist any person or group of persons seeking to overthrow, suspend, or abrogate the Constitution or any part thereof. This duty is not optional. It is not subject to the convenience of the Speaker or the political calculations of the Majority Leader. It is an obligation owed to the Republic itself.

Article 41 (Duties of a Citizen) further enjoins every citizen to uphold and defend the Constitution, to foster national unity, and to respect the rights and freedoms of others. The Minority Leader, in refusing to acquiesce to an unconstitutional and internationally unlawful resolution, was not being insubordinate he was being a patriot.

When a parliamentary resolution directly contravenes the Constitution and Ghana’s international treaty obligations, it ceases to be law. It becomes what St. Augustine warned against an instrument of injustice masquerading as authority. To obey such a resolution would not be respect for Parliament it would be treason against the Constitution.

The Speaker, in his ruling, waxed eloquent about the dignity and authority of Parliament. But what dignity is there in violating the Constitution? What authority exists in defying international law? What respect can Parliament command when it degrades itself into an instrument of political vendetta?

The Minority Leader did not bring Parliament into disrepute. The Speaker and the Majority Leader did. By crafting an unconstitutional resolution, by ignoring written objections, by committing diplomatic disgrace, and by embarrassing Ghana before ECOWAS, they have desecrated the very institution they claim to defend.

And now they seek to punish the one man who had the courage, the constitutional fidelity, and the moral clarity to stand firm in defence of the rule of law.

This is not contempt of Parliament. This is a defence of the Constitution. And if defending the Constitution is now contempt, then every patriotic Ghanaian should be prepared to be held in contempt by this Speaker and this Majority.

A WIDER WEB OF INTIMIDATION

This ECOWAS debacle is only one strand in a coordinated campaign of intimidation against the Minority Leader:

• First, NDC National Vice-Chairman Chief Sofo Azorka publicly threatened to “deal with” Hon. Afenyo-Markin in his constituency an open incitement to violence that remains unprosecuted despite a police statement claiming he had been arrested.
• Second, the Attorney-General’s Office has floated threats of criminal reviews through strategic media leaks, calculated to tarnish the Minority Leader’s reputation and create a chilling effect on his parliamentary oversight role.
• Third, NDC social media operatives have been mobilised in a coordinated propaganda campaign to brand the Minority Leader as “insubordinate” and “unfit for office.”

Fourth, and most egregiously, Hon. Ayariga the very architect of the unconstitutional ECOWAS delegation changes has now petitioned to drag the Minority Leader before the Privileges Committee for no offence other than attending to his lawful duties.

These are not isolated incidents. This is a pattern of state-enabled intimidation a coordinated assault on democratic accountability.

OUR DEMANDS

We demand the following:

1. The immediate withdrawal of the Privileges Committee petition. It is a grotesque abuse of process and an affront to justice.
2. A public apology from the Speaker and Majority Leader to ECOWAS and to the people of Ghana for the international embarrassment they have caused.
3. The passage of a resolution restoring Hon. Afenyo-Markin’s name to Ghana’s ECOWAS delegation and affirming Ghana’s commitment to the rule of law under Article 75 of the Constitution.
4. An end to the coordinated persecution of the Minority Leader by the Attorney-General’s Office, NDC operatives, and party foot soldiers.
5. The prosecution of Chief Sofo Azorka for his public threat of violence against the Minority Leader.

CONCLUSION

This episode is an indelible stain on Ghana’s democracy. It reveals a leadership willing to bend the Constitution, mislead international partners, and criminalise dissent to serve political ends. But truth, law, and conscience will prevail. ECOWAS has spoken. The world has seen. And history will judge.

The NPP and the Minority stand firm with Hon. Afenyo-Markin not because of party affiliation, but because the rule of law demands it.

We shall defend the rule of law, we shall uphold and defend the constitution,

We will defend him, we will defend Ghana’s democracy. And we will not rest until those who abuse their power are held to account. Thank you.

 

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