Ghana’s Parliament turned into a battleground on Thursday night as a heated vetting session spiraled into physical clashes, forcing police intervention.
Lawmakers engaged in pushing, shoving, and damaging furniture, tables, and microphones in a dramatic showdown that shocked the nation, according to BBC reports.
The chaos erupted as members of the vetting committee accused opposition MPs of deliberately dragging out proceedings for political reasons.
Tensions peaked when the committee spent more than five hours grilling Samuel Nartey George, the communications minister-designate, in what many saw as a retaliatory move.
The cross-party committee had been tasked with vetting three lawmakers from the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), following the party’s victory over the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in December’s elections.
However, friction escalated when NDC MPs accused NPP parliamentary leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin of prolonging questioning in an attempt to pressure George into retracting past criticisms of former President Nana Akufo-Addo and his Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia.
What started as a heated debate soon turned into an all-out brawl, with shouting matches, overturned furniture, and broken microphones. Security officers were called in to restore order as the situation spiraled out of control.
By Friday morning, the chairman of the vetting committee publicly apologized to Ghanaians, calling the incident "totally unacceptable."
However, Afenyo-Markin defended the NPP’s approach, stating that parliamentary customs allow lawmakers to "enquire deeply into every nominee of the president, without limit to questions." He, in turn, accused the NDC of attempting to frustrate the vetting process.
As tensions continue to mount, Ghanaians are left questioning whether their lawmakers can uphold the dignity of Parliament or if future sessions will descend into further chaos.