Parliament approves 24 ministerial nominees by Akuffo-Addo
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Parliament last Friday approved the President’s nominees for positions as ministers and deputy ministers despite a walkout called by the Minority.
The caucus staged the walkout as a way to express their disapproval of the government’s perceived bloated size and the financial costs to the tax payers.
The Minority Caucus’ move however did not, prevent the nominations from being approved because the Majority Caucus continued to support the candidates in the House. The Appointed Committee thoroughly investigated the nominations, who included nine ministers-designate, one minister of state, and fourteen deputy ministers-designate, in March 2024.
Following a motion made by committee chairman Joseph Osei-Owusu and a recommendation to the House that they adopt the report and approve the nominees by consensus, they gave their approval.
Ministers designate
The ministers-designate are Ophelia Mensah Hayford, the minister of the environment, science, technology, and innovation; Lydia Seyram Alhassan, the minister of sanitation and water resources; Martin Adjei-Mensah Korsah, the minister of local government, decentralization, and rural development; and Andrew Egyapa Mercer, the minister of tourism, arts, and culture.
The remaining individuals are Daniel Nii Kwartei Titus-Glover for the Greater Accra Region, Darkoa Newman for the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye for the Ministry of Health, Fatimatu Abubakar for the Ministry of Information, Daniel Machator for the Oti Region, and Abena Osei-Asare as the minister of state designate.
Deputy ministers designate
The ministries of Gender, Children, and Social Protection (Dr. Benjamin Sekyere Yeboah); Information (Sylvester Tetteh); Communication and Digitalization (Charles Acheampong); Health (Adelaide Ntim); and Local Government, Decentralization, and Rural Development (Vincent Ekow Assafuah) are the designated deputy ministers.
The others are: Professor Kingsley Nyarko from the Ministry of Education; Festus Awuah Kwofie from the Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations; Akwasi Konadu from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources; Musah Abdul Aziz Ayaba from the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development; and Dr. Alexander Ampaabeng from the Ministry of Finance. John Kobina Abbam Aboah Sanie from the Ministry of Energy.
Reasons behind walkout
Dr. Forson informed the House that every member of the Minority on the Appointments Committee had voted against the nominations at the committee level, so explaining the Minority’s choice to abstain from the candidates’ approval process prior to the walking out by the minority in Parliament.
He claimed that the nation’s experiences—such as the dire economic crisis, food insecurity, the debt pile brought on by excessive borrowing, and careless and wasteful spending—were the reason for the Minority’s conduct.
“Ordinary Ghanaians continue to bite the bullet and businesses are struggling under high tax regime to contribute to the development of the country. “What is expected on the part of the government would have been prudent management of these contributions from the people of Ghana but hardly a day passes without one reckless and wasteful expenditure or the other by this government,” he said.
He clarified that the current government’s bad state of affairs in Ghana necessitated not only the adoption of novel, inventive, and daring approaches to problem-solving, but also the political class’s humility and selflessness.
“It cannot be right that while the government urges the people to bite the bullet, those in government and their family and friends chew chocolate.”
“Merely piling on numbers by way of appointment of ministers and deputy ministers does not signal to the people of Ghana that the President understands the seriousness of the mess that his government has created,” Dr Forson added.
Earlier obstructions
Prior to this, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, the National Democratic Congress member for South Dayi, called the House’s attention to his ongoing legal battle against the nominations before the Supreme Court.
In support of Mr. Dafeamekpor, Dr. Dominic Ayine, the NDC MP for Bolgatanga East, reminded the House that Parliament was prohibited by Order 123 from debating issues that could potentially be prejudicial cases that were still pending in court.
He claimed that the approval of the ministerial candidates had a direct bearing on a case that was being heard by the Supreme Court, in which Mr. Dafeamekpor, the plaintiff, was a member of the House.
“Mr Speaker, if we decide today to approve, by a resolution of Parliament, the President’s nomination of the ministers, what we will be doing is to overreach the court’s decision.
“Overreaching a court’s decision means that we are undermining the Judiciary in terms of its ability to render decisions that binds the parties before the court,” he said. He, therefore, urged the House to suspend the approval of the nominees, pending the outcome of the case before the Supreme Court.”
The Speaker, however, overrode their objection and permitted the House to move forward with approving the President’s nominees