The Managing Editor for energynewsafrica.com, an online portal operated in the Republic of Ghana, Michael Creg Afful has suggested to the President of the West African nation, H.E Nana Akufo-Addo, to appoint a substantive Minister and one deputy to head the Energy Ministry in his second term instead of the three deputies he assigned to the sector in his first term.
President Akufo-Addo secured a second term mandate after the December 7, 2020, Presidential and Parliamentary elections in Ghana.
He was subsequently sworn into office last Thursday and is due to appoint substantive and deputy ministers for his new administration.
Speaking as a panelist on Energy101 programme on Asaase Radio, a local radio station in Accra, capital of Ghana, Creg Afful contended that the Energy Ministry has a number of agencies with competent heads to augment the efforts of the sector minister, so keeping one deputy should not be a challenge to the sector.
“We have the Ghana Gas working. We have GNPC working. We have Energy Commission working. We have NPA working. We have ECG working and we have NEDCO working,” he stressed.
He said all these agencies work to ensure smooth operations of the country’s energy sector, therefore, to cut down on cost, the President needs to appoint a substantive minister and his deputy for the four-year term.
“You know we have a Director In-Charge of Distribution that supervises NEDCo and Electricity of Ghana (ECG). There is also a director in charge of Generation and Transmission. And these departments work to ensure that there is availability of power,” he noted.
Mr. Creg Afful was, based on that, of the view that there is no need to have three deputies in charge of petroleum, power and finance and infrastructure as the country witnessed during the President’s first term.
“We only need one deputy minister because like I said, Petroleum Commission’s CEO is working, VRA’s CEO is working, CEO of GRIDCo is working so why should all these people be working and yet need more? We need a substantive Minister and his deputy,” he suggested strongly.
Most Ghanaians criticised the President for creating and appointing over 130 ministers and their deputies in his first term in office.
Delivering a speech to commence his second term of office, President Akufo-Addo assured the nation of his avowed commitment to working with only hard working people and with reduced ministries, as well as ministers to ensure Ghana’s sustainable development.
