Ghana’s Minority caucus in parliament, has demanded heads roll over $19 Sputnik V vaccine debacle.
They called for the sack of Foreign Affairs Minister, Hon. Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, for not meeting “the basic expectations of her office”.
“The abysmal failure in leveraging historic diplomatic ties with the Russians at a time we in the Minority have unfettered access to the Russians is most embarrassing.
“She ought to be fired if she cannot meet the basic expectations of her office”, they noted.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) legislators will file a motion for a bipartisan probe into the procurement of Sputnik V vaccines from Russia through middlemen.
Government, through the Health Minister, Kwaku Agyemang Manu has signed two contracts for supply of Sputnik V vaccines at $19 and $18.5 through middlemen.
The move government explains is as a result of difficulties in securing vaccines at $10 per dose through government to government arrangements.
In addition to the Foreign Affairs Minister, they’ve criticized the Health Minister, Agyemang Manu, for penning the deals in question.
The Health Minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu at the meet the press engagement last week disclosed a deputy ambassador at the Russian embassy was engaged by government to facilitate the procurement of the vaccines but to no avail.
However, addressing the media, Minority leader, Haruna Iddrisu, disclosed that after investigations, a deputy Ambassador portfolio did not exist at the Russian embassy, suggesting that was a lie told.
The Tamale South MP argued the contracts breach Article 181 (5) of the Constitution, which requires such international transactions to secure parliamentary approval and thus must be halted immediately.
The speech of the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu at the press conference are as follows.