Dr Samuel Ankrah, a Development Economist has agreed with the call by Mr Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, the Majority Leader of Parliament and Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, that the constitution must indeed place an upper ceiling on the number of Ministers of State required to run the affairs of the country.
He said, however, that beyond the Ministries, the same attention must be accorded some state agencies.
“We must consider as well, a merger of some state agencies, as there exist some wasteful duplication of roles, with their attendant burden on the state’s resources,” the Economist said.
Dr Ankrah who is also an investment banker and a global business strategist, was giving his assessment of the lecture by Mr Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA).
While presenting the lecture on the topic, “The Relevance of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution Within the Context of Global Democratic Practices”, that covered various areas including the crafting of the Constitution, previous efforts made at amendment, evidence for demands for amendment from prominent Ghanaians and situating it on the current global and local context, the Majority leader observed, among others, concerns over the “excessive” appointing powers of the President.
Dr Ankrah noted that, “with the current duplication of roles, institutions are sometimes either at a loss, or up in arms with each other, over who has greater mandate to implement defined roles and responsibilities. When this counter-productive situation gets fixed, there’ll be more efficiency in service delivery and value for money for the taxpayer.”
Regarding the appointing powers of the President, Dr Ankrah said, this weaves as well into the Minister’s argument on the appointment of the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice. The Economist was of the added opinion that, appointments into Constitutional bodies, including the Electoral Commission must be bi-partisan, as those appointments transcend political regimes.
“History has taught us that, although such appointees have been largely independent in their deliberations, they are presumed to lean loyal to the political ideologies of the appointing President. So I believe, a committee made up of equal membership and equal authority, drawn from the two leading parties in Parliament should be constituted to jointly nominate someone they’re both comfortable with, to be appointed then by the President.
He added, “Same should be done for the appointment of the National Development Planning Commission, the Attorney-General (ceded off the Ministry of Justice) and the Inspector-General of Police, among others, to establish a stronger degree of political and public trust and support for decisions they take”.
Reacting to the Majority Leader’s opinion on the relevance of a Vice President in the absence of the President, Dr. Ankrah said, “In terms of function, the Majority Leader is right. However, I am of the strong opinion that, the Office of the Veep must be maintained.”
He explained that in order to preserve the peace and political stability of the country, it’s an investment worth sustaining. “The Veep may have a floating role, but when their relevance comes into play, the impact is invaluable. Consider the smooth transfer of power to the then Vice President Mahama by dusk on the unfortunate demise of President Mills earlier that day. Besides the guaranteed peace and stability, the socio-economic benefits are significant.
Source: GNA
