The Members of the Minority Caucus in Parliament on the Appointment Committee of the House have boycotted the vetting of the three recent Supreme Court justice nominees of President John Dramani Mahama.

Before the vetting of one of the nominees, Justice Edward Amoako Asante, could start, Afenyo-Markin objected to the process, arguing that the sitting should be postponed.

He claimed that there was an argument for the vetting of the justices to be done in October, accusing the Majority Caucus of violating the rules of the House.

“The procedure that has been adopted is at variance with the orders of the House. How can you ask us to vet Supreme Court judges with three days’ notice,” he queried.

“... The standard practice is to give fourteen days’ notice, advertise in the newspapers before the vetting is done,” Afenyo-Markin argued.

The Chairman of the Appointment Committee, Bernard Ahiofor, challenged the objection of the Minority Leader.

He said that the rules of the House had not been violated and went on to rule that the vetting should continue.

The Minority Leader then went on to state that his side could not take part in the vetting because the rules of the House were being violated.

“To the nominees, we are not against your nomination; we are against the procedure, and we cannot be part of this,” he said.

Afenyo-Markin then walked out, followed by other members of the Minority Caucus on the Appointment Committee.

The three Supreme Court nominees are Justice Sophia Rosetta Bernasko-Essah, a Justice of the Court of Appeal; Justice Edward Amoako Asante, also a Court of Appeal Justice and former President of the ECOWAS Court of Justice; and Anthony Forson Jr, a private legal practitioner and former President of the Ghana Bar Association.

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