Education Minister and Member of Parliament for Tamale South, Haruna Iddrisu has teased that he will one day disclose the identity of the individual who sat in the parliamentary seat of former Dome-Kwabenya MP Sarah Adwoa Safo during the controversial 2022 budget approval.
The incident, which occurred in November 2021 during the passage of the 2022 Budget Statement and Fiscal Policy, sparked widespread speculation and debate across Ghana.
In a hung Parliament, where every vote mattered critically, photos and claims emerged suggesting that a woman occupying Safo’s seat was not the MP herself, a claim which fueled allegations of impersonation and proxy voting.
The matter became a national talking point on social media and traditional platforms for weeks, leading to questions about parliamentary integrity.
Speaking in an exclusive interview on TV3 on Thursday, March 5, 2026, Haruna Iddrisu who served as Minority Leader at the time, revisited the episode while advising the current Minority Leader, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, on responsible parliamentary discourse.
Afenyo-Markin had recently levelled accusations regarding ongoing security services recruitment but later retracted them and apologised.
Drawing from his own experience, Iddrisu urged leaders to exercise caution and ensure statements are verifiable.
“The Minority Leader needs to choose his battles. If you read authorities in parliamentary jurisprudence, the truth must always rest with the Minority. So make sure when you’re speaking as Minority Leader, you’re certain that you cannot be contradicted,” he said.
He pointed to his record as Minority Leader, challenging the public to assess his tenure for unsubstantiated remarks or retractions.
“And for my tenure, you can go and measure. Someday I’ll reveal to Ghanaians; I hear who was present, who was not present. That lady MP knows herself, who probably was not available to take a vote that particular day, certainly not Haruna Iddrisu.
“The lady MP knows whom she spoke to, I probably wasn’t aware. But as Minority Leader, I needed to protect her seat, that was why I never wanted people to know who was that person,” Iddrisu added.
