Month: January 2025

Member of Parliament for Akuapem North, Sammi Awuku has noted that in the current ninth Parliament, the crop of first time lawmakers on the Minority side are fantastic and solid young men and ladies who are ready to do serious business on the floor of the House.

According to him apart from conducting themselves well, they are also battle ready to scrutinize government programmes, projects and polices.

He  further noted in an interview that he and his colleagues are promising young men and women and will not be cajoled into submission as they are very determined to do business and have a very good representation of their constituents.

He was speaking in respect of the vetting of the first batch of President Mahama’s minsters designates in which the Minority raised issues about the conduct of the Majority side towards the Minority accusing them of deliberately obstructing scrutiny of the nominees.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

The leadership of the Majority side in Parliament is opened for replacement following the nominations of 3 of the current occupants to ministerial positions.

The first batch of President Mahama’s ministerial nominees saw the Majority Leader and MP for Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam, Cassiel Ato Forson taken away as Minister designate for Finance.

The second batch of ministerial nominees saw two more persons from the leadership including Governs Kwame Agbodza, MP for Adaklu and Majority Whip as Minister designate for Roads and Highways with Ahmed Ibrahim, MP for Banda and Deputy Chief Whip as Minister designate for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs.

It is romoured that the rests of the current leadership have also been penciled for other positions yet to be known as the president continues with the nominations.

Meanwhile, the development will not in any way affect the performance of the Majority Leadership since there are a huge number of competent and experienced hands among the Majority to easily step into those roles.

Some names are being speculated around are possible replacements of these persons already given ministerial roles and with time all these will be made public.

Ghanamps.com

President John Dramani Mahama has appointed Member of Parliament for Banda, Ahmed Ibrahim as Minister-designate for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs.

His name was included in a list of 12 newly appointed ministers-designate submitted to parliament, through the Speaker, to serve as regional and sector Ministers.

The President has also appointed former Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu as Minister of Education designate.

NDC youth organizer, George Opera-Addo, is also heading to the newly created Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment while Agnes Naa MoMo Lartey has been appointed Minister designate for Gender, Children and Social protection.

Below is the list of newly appointed ministers:

Member of Parliament for Tano North, Dr. Gideon Boako has set the record straight that the Minority side is only outlining the difficulties in the process leading to the vetting of the first batch of President John Dramani Mahama’s Ministers designate but not calling for their rejection.

According to him after the work of the Appointment Committee, the plenary has the mandate to take the final decision on the nominees.

Responding to a question during the Minority’s first-time MPs press conference on Wednesday, January 15, 2025 he noted that they are only putting their observation with some difficulties encountered during the vetting, and hoping that those mistakes will be corrected and the chairman of the Committee to also refrain from shouting on MPs at the vetting.

“It’s Parliament that can decide on whether it will reject a nominee when the report comes to the floor of the House for us to have a perfect vetting”, he noted.

Again, they believe the leadership of the Appointment Committee will take on board issues they have raised.

On the issues of why they did not boycott the vetting process considering the number of issues they raised, he said there are so many things that can occasion some actions; “we are there in the interest of the people of Ghana, we have to weigh the options; the problem we are talking about is not fatal to the process, as such there is no need to boycott. “We will make mistakes but it’s up to us to point it out to the leadership, the short falls do not necessitate boycott”, he added.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ Ghanamps.com

President John Dramani Mahama has submitted a list of 10 nominees to Parliament.

The list which is the first batch of Regional Minister nominees was submitted through the Speaker for prior approval.

They include as contained in the release below:

Mr Jinapor had indicated that CenPower had up to 23 days of fuel reserve as at the time of President Mahama’s swearing-in on January 7, 2025.
The Minister-designate for Energy, John Jinapor has stated that his recent claim that Ghana had only 5 hours of fuel reserves left and that the entire country was going to experience serious load shedding was only in respect of Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO).

Mr Jinapor further admitted and confirmed to the Appointments Committee that CenPower, one of several power generation companies in the country has up to 23 days of fuel reserve as at the time of President Mahama’s swearing-in on 7 January 2025.

Mr John Jinapor, answering a question posed to him by the Ranking member of the Appointment Committee in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo Markin, when he appeared before the committee, noted that the media misquoted him based on the headlines they put out following his social media post and his comments after President John Mahama’s swearing-in on January 7, 2025. “I was specific; I said we had 5 hours of HFO, and it is true. We had 5 hours of HFO. I said we had zero hours of DFO for Sunon Asogli, and it is true. I gave a breakdown, but I don’t develop the headlines; I do not write the stories.”

“The recording is there, and the truth is that we had 5 hours of HFO, and if there is any problem with gas supplies, we are going to lose as much as 370 megawatts in 5 hours’ time, which will lead to load shedding. So, as far as I am concerned, that is a fact,” John Jinapor stated before the Appointments Committee.

In his earlier post on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, John Jinapor claimed that “as a result of this unpatriotic and reckless decision [by the erstwhile Akufo-Addo administration not to purchase fuel for power generation before leaving office], Ghanaians will experience serious load shedding during the period of the pipeline maintenance and pigging exercise scheduled by WAPCo on the West African Gas Pipeline from Nigeria to Ghana, from 20 January to 16 February 2025.”

“Today, as President Mahama prepares to assume office, our checks from the system operator (GRIDCO) have revealed that Ghana has less than 2 days of stock for both Distillate Fuel and Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) with no plans put in place by the outgoing administration to restock the depleting fuel stocks despite assurances by government officials to the transition team.

“The Ministry of Energy confirmed at the joint transition team meetings that WAPCo had originally scheduled to begin the pipeline cleanup and inspection exercise in October 2024 aimed at protecting the integrity and assuring safe operations of WAPCo’s offshore pipeline. However, the Akufo Addo-led government deliberately coerced WAPCo to postpone the exercise to 20 January 2025 under the guise of requiring time to secure the needed parcels of liquid fuel to augment any gas shortfall during the maintenance period.

“Indeed, at the meeting of the subcommittee of the joint transition team on Energy and Natural Resources, the Ministry of Energy gave numerous assurances that, in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance and other key players in the country’s gas-to-power sector, adequate provision had been put in place to mitigate the impact on the country’s grid system and ensure a reliable and stable power supply during the shutdown,” John Jinapor’s post read.
Ghanamps.com

Ranking Member on the Appointment Committee, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin has strongly objected to the Majority Chief Whip, Governs Kwame Agbodza’s attempt to intimidate a first-time Member of Parliament, Sammi Awuku in his attempt to ask questions at the first sitting of the Committee.

According to the Majority Whip Sammi Awuku is not a member of the Committee and cannot ask more than one question since he is a friend to the Committee.

But the Minority Leader pointed out in his objections that his side has cooperated with the Majority side of the House and any attempt to intimidate a first-timer the effect is known to the Majority when he pinches them small.

He also raised concerns over the manner in which the chairman of the Appointment Committee, Bernard Ahiafor raises his voice at members from the Minority side of the House.

“I have been calm Hon. Kofi Armah Buah, try to take the power from the chair when I talk you have issue with it. You have to tolerate us enough and be patient; so far your side has not done the needed scrutiny. Again, you are in government, we will be the one to do the scrutiny please if the rule of this game is tolerance do not heckle me; do not act as if you are in opposition, if it’s your style to attack me you will have it”.

He assured to accord every member of the committee with the needed respect and saying their side will treat all with the needed respect. “We are here in good faith; the minority has cooperated with the chairman of the Committee for us to get here in good faith since the letter got to us in Parliament.”

Again, the vetting was supposed to start on Tuesday, January 14, 2025 but the Chairman reached out to me regarding some urgency and I convinced my side because it was said the president needed his people, he stated.

“I am here to do the people’s work with my team; the posture of attack on me, the Minority, I will not take it anymore when my presentation has to receive interjections. Go and check if then Minority Leader, Bagbin and Haruna were treated that way.

I know governance and I will support, but no one should use this to attack and frustrate us; it will not work, we are not going to boycott the sitting”, he concluded.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com