At the tail end of Oppong Nkrumah’s vetting by the Appointments Committee of Parliament, he received commendations from the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, who praised him for being a good communicator.
This statement by Haruna Iddrisu was seen as an endorsement by the Minority side of the house which has 13 members on the 26-member committee.
This was crucial because nominees per the Standing Orders of Parliament need a majority of votes from the members of the committee to be approved.
It has, however, turned out that Haruna’s praise of Oppong Nkrumah was on a personal level, and not a representation of the position of the minority members of parliament.
As the speculations thrive, three reasons have surfaced as grounds for the rejection of Oppong Nkrumah by the NDC side of the committee.
Alleged ownership of MX24 Television station
The first and most decisive are his responses on his ownership of a television station, MX24.
This came to light when the committee rejected Oppong Nkrumah after minority members reportedly passed a vote of no confidence in him.
During the vetting, the Minority Chief Whip quizzed him on reports that he owns the television station, Oppong Nkrumah was emphatic in his answers that he has no interest in that television station.
Muntaka: Do you have any shares in MX24?
Oppong Nkrumah: No, I do not have shares.
Muntaka: Did you apply in the last parliament for members holding profit?
Oppong Nkrumah: Yes I did.
Muntaka; In that case, you are both policymaker, oversight and participant in the media?
Oppong Nkrumah: Yes, to that extent I’m a shareholder.
Muntaka: When was the frequency for MX24 issued?
Oppong Nkrumah: I would not know.
Muntaka: But is it when you were Minister of Information?
Oppong Nkrumah: I would not know. I’m not a shareholder in that company.
Reports indicate that the minority believe Oppong Nkrumah was not honest with his responses on his connection with MX24.
Collapse of Oval Microfinance Limited
Oppong Nkrumah’s ties with the collapsed Microfinance company did not do him any good before the minority members.
The MPs, according to the report, were unimpressed with his role in the collapse of the company and the answers he gave before the committee regarding this matter.
Oppong Nkrumah was the majority shareholder in that company according to the reports.
Ayine’s contempt charge
The other reason that has come up as the Minority’s basis for rejecting Oppong Nkrumah is that he motioned for the justices of the Supreme Court to charge former Deputy Attorney General, Dominic Ayine, with contempt.
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
