Dr Eric Oduro Osae, Dean of Graduate Studies and Research at the Institute of Local Government Studies has said the creation of new ministries by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is geared towards fulfilling the campaign promise he made prior to the 2016 election.
Mr Akufo-Addo on Thursday January 12 announced the creation of the Ministry of Inner City and Zongo Development which, according to Dr Osae, reflects the governing New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) promise to assist Zongos – predominantly Muslim settlements in cities – with the setting up of a Zongo Development Fund to give such communities a facelift.
“I think he’s trying to create ministries to reflect the promises he made. I noticed that he made the promise of creating a Zongo Development Fund, so he thought that there is a need for him to create an administrational architecture that will deliver that one. But for the Inner City, I think they want to concentrate on other parts of the city and today the president has brought some clarity to bear on the reasons why he’s created certain ministries,” Dr Osae said on 505 on Class91.3FM shortly after Mr Akufo-Addo announced the creation of the new ministry.
Dr Osae disagreed with critics who argued that some new ministries set up were a duplication of others. According to him, Ghanaians should be patient and know the functions of the various ministries before they jump to conclusion.
“Yesterday [Wednesday January 11], when he mentioned the second batch of ministers, I was wondering what was in store for them, but today [Thursday] he brought clarity to the effect that…about six of them will operate from the Office of the President, which for me is not a bad thing at all. So, I think it’s in the right direction, but let us all wait because the president is yet to detail out the specific functions. He’s detailed some of them generically, but he is yet to detail out the specific functions. Once he states the functions, then we will be able to conclude whether they are duplicities or not,” he explained.
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