The Minority of Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu has accused the Minister of Trades and Industry, Dr. Ekow Spio-Garbrah of lying to the Appointment Committee of Parliament about his secondary school education.
Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu said investigations showed that the Spio-Gabrah�s account that he entered secondary school at age 9 was not true.
�When we probed further it came to the fore that the nominee had been repeated in Primary school a couple of times so it was most untrue the message he transmitted to the House,� he said.
He said Spio-Grabrah himself even acknowledged that he was indeed repeated a couple of times.
Addressing the House on Tuesday�s sitting, the Minority Leader said Spio-Garbrah only boasted about issues that were untrue.
�You don�t come before Parliament boasting about something that is factually untrue. Mr. Speaker, if this is not an indictment on other Ministers of State, I don�t see what else will constitute an indictment.�
The Minority Leader in Parliament also criticized Spio-Grabrah over what he termed, �the nominee�s seeming arrogant posture.�
Contributing to a debate shortly before the nominee was approved by the House, the Minority Leader catalogued a number of instances during the vetting process where the nominee seemed to have behaved arrogantly.
Although he seconded the motion for Spio-Grabrah to be approved as Trades Minister, the Minority Leader urged the nominee to be humble when dealing with his colleagues and subordinates at the new Ministry.
�Mr. Speaker certainly one must exude confidence but over -amplication of ones own successes and even perceived successes certainly would amount or perhaps translate to egocentrisim and self conceit and even arrogance.�
�There are little matters that as a House we should concern ourselves with because the person is going to superintend over a very big ministry to which huge allocations would be made every year and if a person is found not be truthful with little matters, we should be careful making the person superintend over huge responsibilities.�
The Appointment Committee after vetting the former Minister of Communications under the erstwhile Rawlings adminstration approved by consensus, the nomination of Spio-Gabrah as the Minister for Trade and Industry on Wednesday.
A report signed by the chairman of the committee, Ebo Barton-Oduro, indicated that: �the Appointment Committee is satisfied that the nominee is suitable to be appointed to the position to which he has been nominated.�
Dr. Spio-Garbrah was among the newly appointed Ministers in President John Mahama�s ministerial reshuffle in June.