Muntaka Mubarak apologises for chaotic inauguration of 8th Parliament

The Member of Parliament for Asawase constituency who doubles as the Minority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak has apologized to Ghanaians for the clash that ensued between legislators during the inauguration of the 8th Parliament.

There was persistent confusion in Parliament during the election of a Speaker of Parliament, which Muntaka was part of.

Speaking on Citi TV’s Upside Down show, the lawmaker expressed deep regrets for his actions and apologised to Ghanaians.

“Let me say that we owe the people of Ghana an apology. I think as Parliament, we ought to have done better because people cannot go and queue from morning to evening to elect us to come and be doing this. I am very sorry for what we did on inauguration day. We could have been more decent,” he said.

Muntaka had earlier defended his actions saying he was mandated by the law to police the election process.

“What I was doing was lawful. The law mandated me as an agent for a candidate to make sure that this happens and that is what I did.”

What happened on the inauguration day?

For hours, scuffles broke out, led by the NDC Caucus’ Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak, who tried to make sure his opposing Whip was not cross-checking the ballots of NPP MPs.

At a point when the NDC MPs were unhappy with the process, they ransacked the voting areas and snatched the ballot box.

Armed military and police personnel then stormed Ghana’s Parliament to confront the NDC MPs.

After the election, Muntaka who was the key person representing the NDC side in the sorting and counting process accosted the Member of Parliament for Tema West, Carlos Ahenkorah after he snatched and attempted to bolt with uncounted ballot papers.

When tensions calmed, Mr. Bagbin was eventually elected Speaker.