In a spirited defence of the Minority's record, Afenyo-Markin stated, “The Minority has not been obstructive. We have been largely cooperative.” He pointed to the work of the Appointments Committee last year as evidence. “Out of numerous appointees, only two or three were put to a vote. The overwhelming majority were approved by consensus, and in record time. We took the view that the government should not be left without ministers for extended periods and that ministers needed to be in place to assume responsibility.”

He extended this argument to the legislative agenda, noting, “The majority of bills that came through regular channels received our full support. We worked through amendments on the floor and passed them by consensus.”

Afenyo-Markin emphasised that while the Minority recognises the importance of the government’s programmes, its duty to scrutinise remains paramount. “Government programmes are key. We raise our critical issues, but we are not destructive. We understand that a government must have the space to govern, but we must not yield in our duty to scrutinise.”

Drawing on his experience as a former Majority member, he added, “I know how difficult it is to run government business on the floor. I would be the last person to want to frustrate it. But with that understanding, I also have a duty to democracy and to the people to whom the government must account. That has been our guiding principle.”

Looking ahead, the Minority Leader called for greater cooperation from the Majority and the Speaker’s chair. “We advise that in this meeting, the Majority should be more accommodating, hear us more, and allow the Minority to do more advocacy. We expect the Speaker to admit more of our motions.”

He concluded by referencing past frustrations, saying, “Last year, we experienced significant frustrations. Motions were filed and declined, often at the last hour, which was quite discouraging. We know not everyone will be happy with our work, but we will leave our record for history to judge.”