Kweku Yeboah, a member of the communication team of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has said that he supports the decision of the minority caucus of Parliament to reject all the new ministerial appointees of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
According to him, the appointment of the new ministers and deputy ministers was unnecessary, particularly given the current economic conditions in the country.
Speaking in a Sompa TV interview monitored by GhanaWeb, on Monday, Yeboah added that the president could simply merge some of the ministries and could have also elevated some of the deputy ministers to fill the vacant ministerial positions.
“As for this one, I agree with NDC because there is a Ministry of Fisheries but we kept importing fish… the Agric Ministry also has a substantive minister and a lot of deputies. How much fish do we harvest in this country for us to have a whole ministry for it?
“… for the Trade and Agric ministries, one of the deputies could have been elevated to replace the ministers who resigned. There is no need to appoint new ministers,” he said in Twi.
Meanwhile, Parliament’s Appointments Committee has vetted all the ministers and deputy minister nominees recently announced by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
On Monday, February 20, 2023, the house vetted ministerial nominees including the Member of Parliament (MP) for Adansi Asokwa, K. T. Hammond, as the minister-designate for Trade and Industry, MP for Abetifi, Bryan Acheampong, has been nominated as the Minister for Food and Agriculture, while Stephen Asamoah Boateng is going to the chieftaincy and religious affairs ministry as minister.
On Tuesday, the committee vetted Osei Bonsu Amoah, the minister of state-designate for Local Government; Stephen Amoah (Sticka), the MP for Nhyiaeso, who would serve as the deputy Trade and Industry Minister if approved; and Mohammed Amin Adam, the MP for Karaga, who was named by President Akufo-Addo as Minister of State - designate at the Finance Ministry.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has directed the minority caucus in parliament not to approve any of the new ministerial nominees appointed by the president.
According to the party, the caucus should rather push for a reduction in the size of government to reduce the needless drain on scarce public resources.
Watch the interview below:
Meanwhile, catch the latest GhanaWeb TV Election Desk interview with Francis Addai-Nimoh, as he discusses his plans to become the NPP's flagbearer, below:
You can also watch this episode of People & Places on GhanaWeb TV below:
Kweku Yeboah, member of the communication team of the New Patriotic Party