The Minister-designate for Communication and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful has described the incidents that occurred prior to the inauguration of the 8th Parliament as a blot on the House’s reputation.

Speaking to Parliament’s Appointments Committee at her vetting on Monday, the Minister admitted that the conduct of some Members of Parliament that dawn was untoward – one that must not be repeated.

“I want to put on record that as Members of the 8th Parliament a lot happened on January 7 that none of us is proud of. We can’t be proud of. And I have been a member of this House for 3 terms and I have never witnessed any incident like what took place on January 7, 2021,” she stated.

“The events of January 7, 2021, are a blot on the reputation of the 8th Parliament. And I know that subsequently, we all realized that things got out of hand and we could have acted differently.”

The inauguration of the 8th Parliament was characterised by several disagreements and some commotion. It all started when Members of Parliament of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) occupied seats on the majority side in the Chamber ahead of the dissolution of the 7th Parliament.

In what some have described as musical chairs-gone bad, the Ablekuma West MP prior to the heated altercation had occupied her seat despite the takeover of the majority side by the NDC.

She insisted on sitting in her seat on the majority side despite calls by the NDC MPs for her to vacate her seat and join her colleagues on the Minority side of the House.

She subsequently had her seat pulled out from under her by MP for Ashaiman, Ernest Henry Norgbey, and in reaction went for Mr Collins Dauda who was seated to her right. Eventually, she settled for the laps of NDC’s MP for Juaboso, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh.

But defending her action, Mrs Owusu-Ekuful stated that her attack on the Asutifi South legislator, Mr Dauda, was a reflex reaction to the initial attack on her. She, however, added that she has apologized to Mr Dauda for the incident but has not yet received an apology from Mr Ernest Norgbey for his actions against her.

“The chair I was sitting on was pulled from under me and I fell to my knees right where I am sitting; so when I got up, instinctively, I made a connection that he (Collins Dauda) may have been in a cahoots with the gentleman who did that.

“And so I said, ‘if you are not going to let me sit on my chair, then I won’t let you sit on yours.’”… I have apologized to Hon Collins Dauda, I am yet to receive an apology from Hon Ernest Norgbey who pulled the chair and pushed me to my knees,” she said.