The Member of Parliament for Effutu and leader of the Minority Caucus in the 9th Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has accused President John Dramani Mahama of breaching the Standing Orders of Parliament.

The Minority Leader raised concerns on behalf of the Minority Caucus regarding the notification to Parliament of the ministerial nominees appointed by President Mahama.

These include Dr Cassiel Ato Forson as Finance Minister-designate, John Abdulai Jinapor as Minister-designate for Energy, and Dominic Akuritinga Ayine as Minister-designate for Attorney General and Minister of Justice.

According to Afenyo-Markin, the Secretary to the President, who purportedly had been given the mandate by the President, signed a letter to the Minority Caucus, referencing Order 65(1) of the rules governing the House.

“Communication from the President to the House shall be to the Speaker in writing, signed by the President, or in the absence of the President, by the Vice President or by a Minister authorised by the President,” he referenced.

Speaking during his vetting before the Appointments Committee of Parliament designated to the aforementioned ministries, Afenyo-Markin further questioned, “So where did this letter from the secretary to Parliament come from?”

He went on to claim that President Mahama’s government had breached the standing orders of Parliament by failing to address the letter directly to the House and instead allowing his secretary to draft the letter.

“President Mahama’s government has breached the standing orders of this House. He failed to write directly to Parliament; he got his secretary to write to us,” he alleged.

He also criticised the President’s secretary for not referencing the letter properly and for making errors in the letter, which he pointed out as he read it out.

“So paragraph one itself has two major problems. When the President took an oath, he stated his name as John Dramani Mahama, not John Mahama. So, the secretary got the name of the President wrong. Secondly, the secretary says that he is doing so on behalf of the President, but he cannot,” he stated.

However, Afenyo-Markin further clarified that the secretary can only sign the letter unless specifically authorised to do so.

He also noted that the letter did not bear the usual salutations typically included in such correspondence, as they are considered diplomatic.

While Mr Afenyo-Markin pardoned the secretary for these errors, he continued to reveal additional mistakes found in the letter.