President Akufo-Addo has rejected claims that his appointment of a Minister of State for Public Procurement, is superfluous, since the country already has a Public Procurement Authority to dealt with government’s procurement issues.
According to him, the two will play separate important roles in his government, and so do not represent the creation of a parallel civil service as asserted by some Ghanaians.
Nana Akufo-Addo has in the last few days come under public criticism for appointing a total of 110 ministers for his government- the largest in Ghana’s history.
He has also been accused of creating a ‘parallel civil service’ by his appointment of ministers in charge of specific activities already handled by some state departments and agencies.
After naming the deputy majority leader and member of parliament for Dome-Kwabenya constituency, Adwoa Sarfo as a Minister of State at the Presidency in charge of Public Procurement, some civil society groups have suggested that the role will be in conflict with the undertakings of the Public Procurement Authority (PPA).
But in an interview with GTV and the Daily Graphic, President Akufo-Addo said they will serve separate roles.
He added that the creation of the ministerial portfolio was necessary because of the country’s “traumatic experience” with public procurement over the last few years.
“For the purpose of where we are now in Ghana, where we’ve gone through a traumatic experience with public procurement, it is necessary for us to focus on it as an area of special concerns. The minister is not coming to take over the job of the public procurement authority,” Akufo-Addo said.
He explained that the minister will help him understand and take decisions on public procurement contracts.
“I wanted a minister here, somebody familiar with the process of public procurement whose duty will be to keep me fully engaged all the time on what is going on. And therefore being able at any stage to alert me if she sees there is something not aright in that system,” the president said.
Akufo-Addo has also justified the need for him to appoint 110 ministers to serve in his government.
According to him, the prevailing economic situation of the country required that he assembled the best brains he had to help him govern the country.
He has further rubbished arguments that the large size of his government will affect the public purse, hence defeating his pre-election pledge to protect the public purse.
He said most of his ministers who have been drawn from parliament will receive just a little more than they would have earned as parliamentarians hence the cost impact on the national coffers will only be marginal.
Source: Citifmonline.com
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Sad story for Ghana. Mr. President your argument is not really sound with all due respects. Empower the statutory dedicated Authority to do its work, you do not need a deputy Majority and an MP to advise you, she is already hands full if she will do her work well in Parliament, that advise you are requesting is the Reponsibility of the CEO of the Procurement Authority and the Board, why all this bureaucratic set up of passing through a paper pusher minister to get to you. You can rule Ghana with less than 40 ministers if we can strengthen and have a well paid, lean Civil and public service dedicated to serving Ghana, we do not need deputy Ministers, have just one political appointee and leave the work to the real technocrats. Why should a PhD at the Ministry very well skilled receive less than a lecturer at the University with the same set skills or a judge with same qualifications, please match skills with the tasks and though I do not agree with yu the Minister for Monitoring will then access and report back. That work can be done as part of Senior Minister's outfit with a dedicated core team of M & E experts doing the actual work. Please listen to the voice of the masses because otherwise hmmmm you may be worse than even Mahama
There are MORE competent Ghanaians to occupy those positions. Is it SAD that every four years same politicians travel overseas begging for funds to help them win elections back home. forgetting that competent Ghanaians with every experience one can think of are in there performing or in the wrong job whereas these politicians can invite them home & ask them to build the nation? Is funny because soon their term will come to PASS . Is a cycle Kuffour, Rawlings etc can testify to that. LISTEN up politicans do not block your EYE WAXX because GHANAIANS elected you not your family, friends or party members.