Why Akufo-Addo may be reluctant to reshuffle ministers

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has been clear in his response to public calls for him to reshuffle his appointees, including ministers.

His stance followed calls from various sections of the public, CSOs and some NPP members for a reshuffle.

Amidst these calls have been suggestions about possible reasons beyond the stated ones by the President, why there may be some hesitancy on the part of the President to reshuffle appointees.

Among these reasons was the relationship the President may have with some of his appointees which puts him in a compromising position.

These suggestions came on the back of comments by the president that he has no immediate plans to cause any changes in his government as such a move will only destabilise his administration.

This, however, has not attracted any relent in the ever-growing pressure on the president to relieve some of his ministers of their positions.

GhanaWeb looks at some of the reasons that have come up as enforcing the president’s position.

A government of family and friends

One of the key targets of the calls for a ministerial reshuffle is the current Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta.

Mr Ofori-Atta, who is a cousin of the president, is being accused by his critics of failing to properly manage the Ghanaian economy resulting in the current economic challenges.

His likes and other ministers, including the Agric Minister, Owusu Afriyie Akoto, who has close ties with the president and Roads Minister, Kwasi Amoako-Attah, who is considered a relative of the president, have also emerged as some of the individuals to be considered in a ministerial reshuffle.

This has fueled assertions by some critics that the president may be reluctant to dismiss or reassign some of his ministers because of his personal relations with them.

“One of the dangers of having so many family and friends in one government, like we are experiencing under an obviously uncaring Nana Akufo-Addo, is the sense of entitlement that comes with it,” Special Aide to former President John Dramani Mahama, Joyce Bawa Mogtari said in a Twitter post,

According to her, the president’s appointees are acting as if they own the ministries and sectors they oversee due to his refusal to fire them despite their poor performances.

“You literally create a pseudo-fiefdom, and the persons who manage fiefdoms act as if they are owners of all that they survey.
“Unsurprisingly, the leader of the fiefdom is unable to reshuffle them even after such an abysmal performance that has foisted on the people, economic hardship and hunger,” she stated.

A quest to protect interests and secrets?

The president’s persistent refusal to reshuffle his appointees has in part been attributed to efforts to protect some secrets of the current administration.

This assertion was shared by a leading member of the New Patriotic Party, Dr Amoako Baah.

“Any government that finds it distasteful to reshuffle ministers has too many secrets, and this is why they don’t want new eyes and ears because the same one who is there plays the game and let’s keep it going; that’s part of the equation,” Dr Amoako Baah who is a political science lecturer at the University of Ghana told Joynews in an interview.

Resource starved appointees can’t be sacked

In his interview with Joynews, Dr Amoako further alluded that the president’s failure to cause a reshuffle in his government is due to his inability to resource his appointees properly.

According to him, the performance of the appointees could be attributed to the lack of resources given to them hence the president’s failure to hold them accountable.

“How are you going to do that? …Talk to Parliamentarians; they will tell you Common Fund never go there. How are they going to be assessed? You were never given the money you needed to work, so based on what are you going to decide competence to ensure that you fire them,” Dr Amoako Baah asked.

A satisfied president defends the performance of his appointees

In an interview on North Star radio, President Akufo-Addo, while responding to calls for a reshuffle in his government following the recent economic crisis in the country, said that he is satisfied with the performance of his appointees and sees no need to heed the calls.

“Many of them, for me, have done outstanding work. Their output has been considerable, and that is what I look at,” he stated.

According to the president, calls for the dismissal of his appointees may be fuelled by persons looking for job opportunities and also some NDC members whose actions may be aimed at undermining government.

“The calls come for all kinds of reasons; NDC wanting to destabilise the government is one. There are people who are also looking for jobs,” he said.