By: Belinda Nketia
Former Deputy Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for Atiwa East, Abena Osei Asare, has defended the Minority Caucus’ walkout during the 2025 Mid-Year Budget Review, describing it as a deliberate and strategic act to protest electoral violence and press for national accountability.
Speaking in an interview on the GTV Breakfast Show on Thursday, July 25, 2025, a day after the presentation of the mid-year budget, Abena Osei Asare explained that the protest was planned in advance and aimed at drawing attention to the violence recorded in the recent Ablekuma North by-election.
“Let me tell Ghanaians this. As a parliamentary group, we have a right to protest when things are not going right. And everybody can attest to the fact that the Ablekuma North violence was real. Lives were at stake,” she stated.
She explained that the protest was not a spontaneous reaction but a calculated move to highlight what she described as the silence of key actors, including the President and civil society organizations, on the issue. “We chose this special day where all Ghanaians are listening… to let Ghanaians know that it is time for the President to speak,” she said, adding that the Minority hoped their actions would prompt diplomatic partners to also raise their voices.
According to the former Deputy Finance Minister, while arrests have reportedly been made in connection with the violence, the response remains insufficient. “It goes beyond that. We are asking the diplomatic corps and development partners, who also contribute to our well-being, to maybe add their voice,” she urged.
The former Deputy Finance Minister also responded to criticisms over the timing of the protest, defending the decision to raise the issue during the mid-year budget session. “Which other more opportune time than this?” she asked. She insisted that Parliament was the right platform to speak out, given the national attention it commands.
She noted that the Speaker of Parliament had attempted to postpone the discussion, acknowledging its importance but suggesting a different time. However, the member of Parliament dismissed this, on grounds that the matter was urgent and deserved to be heard immediately.
“Violence did occur, and if you do not check this electoral violence, tomorrow it may be something that will go a long way to affect our democracy in a way that you and I would not be happy,” she warned.
When asked whether the walkout would still have happened if the Speaker had allowed a Minority MP to complete a statement on the matter, she said the opportunity never arose. “It did not happen. And we felt it should be brought to the fore, because this is serious,” she said.
Background
The Minority Caucus staged a walkout, when the Finance Minister was due to deliver the 2025 Mid-Year Budget Review. This according to the Minority, was in protest of electoral violence that characterised the Ablekuma North by-election on Saturday, July 13, 2025. They cited the government’s perceived inaction, the silence of the President, and the lack of robust condemnation from civil society and state institutions.
The Speaker of Parliament had ruled that the floor was not the appropriate platform to raise such concerns during the budget session, a position the Minority rejected. The walkout was seen as a symbolic act to draw national and international attention to what the Minority described as growing threats to Ghana’s democratic process.
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