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The Member of Parliament for the Atwima-Mponua constituency in the Ashanti Region, Isaac Asiamah, on Friday accused the first Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Ebo Barton-Odro of covering up corrupt acts perpetuated by the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).

Speaking on the floor of Parliament, Mr. Asiamah said GNPC violated parliament’s directive that ordered them not to rent an office complex, which according to him, was expensive and unnecessary.

“They wanted to rent an apartment and then we [Parliament] looked at their balance sheet, we looked at their inflows and said no, you have more money sitting there so why don’t you acquire your own property, build your own office so that it becomes the property of Ghana so that generations will benefit from that office; but they said they wanted to go and rent an apartment costing about 40 million dollars. 

“That money can build a mansion at least for about ten years. Parliament agreed that GNPC should go and build their own house but they did their own thing…what GNPC has done is a gross disrespect to the authority of Parliament .The GNPC is trying to say they have no regard for Parliament and they will do their own thing …”Mr. Asiamah complained. 

But Ebo Barton-Odro who prevented the MP from fully making his submission on the floor of parliament, questioned the authenticity of the document he presented as evidence to back his claims.

Speaking to Citi News, Isaac Asiamah lashed out at Barton-Oduro for preventing the House from interrogating the matter.

“The attitude of the Speaker was so strange, it was so bad. That is the same attitude we put up at the judgement debt that will cause this country millions of dollars. If you put up such an attitude then corruption will thrive , corruption will be motivated…It will turn out to be that the Speaker himself will be exposed because this document didn’t come from me. We should be seen to be fighting corruption as a house. If we don’t do that, this country will never grow,” the MP said angrily.

But the Deputy Majority Leader and Member of Parliament for Ashaiman, Alfred Agbesi, told Citi Eyewitness News it was wrong for the MP to accuse the Deputy Speaker in that manner.

He explained that the processes used by Isaac Asiamah to get his concerns across to the Speaker was against parliamentary practice, hence the Deputy Speaker’s action.