Carlos Ahenkorah must be sanctioned for snatching ballot papers – Murtala Mohammed

The Member of Parliament of Tamale Central, Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed has called for sanctions to be laid against Carlos Ahenkorah for snatching ballot papers in Parliament today.

Speaking to JoyNews’ Benjamin Akakpo, Murtala Mohammed stated that he expects “the NPP as a political party to sanction Carlos”.

“Carlos Ahenkorah ought to be investigated. There is no doubt, he was captured on video,” he added.

During JoyNews’ live coverage of the inauguration of the 8th Parliament, MP-elect for Tema West, Carlos Kingsley Ahenkorah was caught on camera running for the nearest exit after snatching ballot papers from parliamentary officials.

Thankfully, his dash across the floor of the House was resisted by security officials and other MPs.

Following the incident, the Tema Central MP has dared the New Patriotic Party to demonstrate their belief in the country’s democratic principles by sanctioning Carlos Ahenkorah.

Mr Murtala Mohammed has described the Tema West MP’s action as unnecessary and unconstitutional.

“We are supposed to be the House that makes the law and we are supposed to be examples for many people. Do you know what this will do to our democracy? We have touted ourselves as a country that should be an example to many countries in Africa. For us to engage in this is just unacceptable,” he stated.

He has also accused Defence Minister Dominic Nitiwul of leading military armed men into the chamber.

“I was there when he was making the call and I confronted him. I asked him whether he didn’t feel embarrassed about what he was doing. He may lie but I wasn’t the only person who saw him. There were about 3 other members present when he made the call in the Chamber.” he said.

According to him, this act stains the sanctity of Parliament and is an affront to the nation’s democracy and as such must be investigated.

The Tamale Central MP says he will avail himself together with 3 other persons as witnesses should investigations commence.

“I think there should be a thorough investigation but it doesn’t mean it should be limited to members of the NPP, any other person should be investigated,” he added.