Next Monday, April 17, 2017, will mark 100 days since President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo took over the administration of the\u00a0country.<\/p>\n
But even before Akufo-Addo crosses that period, the Center for Democratic Development, CDD-Ghana, has registered its displeasure with some decisions taken by government.<\/p>\n
CDD Ghana in a statement released on Wednesday, although commended government for speedily assembling its team in real time, it was\u00a0not happy with the number of ministers the President appointed.<\/p>\n
[contextly_sidebar id=”BPcRFbnEHB9ZfMmVbKqYhkTKMQXE3own”]According to CDD Ghana, the 110 ministers assembled by the President will put pressure on the public purse.<\/p>\n
\u201cCDD-Ghana feels badly disappointed by president Akufo-Addo\u2019s decision to appoint 110 ministers. It flies in the face of the president\u2019s own declared commitment to protect the public purse as well as its longstanding good governance advocates\u2019 campaign for meaningful reduction in the size of government and resultant government spending. We believe that the appointments of so many politicians to manage the state bureaucracy will further deepen its politicisation and undermine its authority,\u201d statement added.<\/p>\n
CDD-Ghana was also not happy with government\u2019s seeming silence on attacks perpetrated by some vigilante groups affiliated to the NPP, namely Delta Forces and Invincible forces.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst, the many instances of NPP-affiliated vigilante groups\u2019 forceful takeover of state assets and public facilities (including toilets, toll booths, school feeding programs, etc.) and the unlawful seizure of vehicles of members of the previous administration put a dent on the hitherto smooth transition process. Worse still, the failure of government, and law enforcement agencies to deal decisively with the NPP-affiliated vigilante groups, mainly the Delta and Invincible Forces, that invaded sensitive government installations such as the passport office and Tema Ports and Harbor, appears to have encouraged the recent brazen attacks on the Ashanti Regional Security Coordinator and a Circuit Court in Kumasi, by the so-called Delta Force.\u201d<\/p>\n
CDD-Ghana further chastised government for hurriedly sacking Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives as well as heads of some state agencies.<\/p>\n
It added that, such practices are inconsistent with good corporate governance practices.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are also disturbed by the continuity in practice after electoral turn-overs whereby the chief executive officers and senior managers of public agencies and parastatals are summarily removed or asked to \u2018proceed on leave,\u2019 and to handover to a caretaker officer\/acting CEO. Such actions are inconsistent with good corporate governance practices, it fosters politicization of the public service as well as political exclusion, and undermines the fight against winner takes all politics. The Center deems the interpretation of who is a political appointee under Section 14 (6) in the Presidential Transition Act 2012 too broad and badly in need of review informed by best practice,\u201d the statement added.<\/p>\n
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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana
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