Economist and Professor of Finance at the University of Ghana Business School, Professor Godfred Bokpin, has criticised Parliament's decision to hold a closed-door meeting with the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Johnson Asiama.

He warned that the move could erode public confidence in the central bank and democratic institutions.

Prof Bokpin argued that greater transparency would have served the interests of both the Bank of Ghana and the public.

"The Majority should have allowed media coverage. The reason is that the central bank, its policies and how it intends to stabilise prices, inflation and so on, part of that process is also to build confidence in the central bank and how it conducts its affairs," he said.

He described Parliament's decision to exclude the media as a setback for Ghana's democracy, warning that it could deepen public mistrust.

"I saw that it was a setback for democracy, what happened yesterday. In fact, all that happened yesterday will feed into greater suspicion and probably undermine confidence in our institutions," he stated.

His comments follow a heated standoff between the Minority and Majority caucuses in Parliament on Wednesday over whether the Governor's appearance before lawmakers should be open to the public after the BoG appeared before Parliament's Economy and Development Committee to brief members on the central bank's financial position and policy direction.

The Minority opposed the decision to hold the meeting behind closed doors, insisting that issues relating to the central bank's operations are of significant public interest and should be discussed openly.

The disagreement led Minority Members of Parliament to stage a walkout before the committee proceeded with the engagement.