Asante Akim North’s Member of Parliament, Kwame Andy Appiah-Kubi, who was among the New Patriotic Party (NPP) lawmakers advocating for the removal of former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta two years ago, clarified that their intention was not to prevent Mr. Ofori-Atta from serving in government altogether.
He explained that their concern was that Ghana’s economy could have performed better without Mr. Ofori-Atta as the Finance Minister.
Mr. Appiah-Kubi made these remarks in response to reports that Mr. Ofori-Atta has been assigned a new role after his removal from the Finance Ministry.
Sources indicate that Mr. Ofori-Atta is expected to be appointed as a Senior Presidential Advisor to President Nana Akufo-Addo, focusing on all matters related to the economy.
Speaking on the Ghana Tonight show on TV3 on Thursday, February 15, Mr Appiah-Kubi said: “Sometimes when you make a call it is subject to certain urgencies of the time. It has come a little late but better late than never because if it had come at the time we made the call, it would have been much greater than it is now.”
He added, “we will take it as it is and say thank you Mr President for listening to us. Indeed it is the prerogative of the President to appoint persons to to positions depending upon his vision and the strategy of achieving the vision so I will give that to him.
“He has the constitutional mandate to do what he has done but we were complaining about the performance in the Finance Ministry and we thought that if he wanted the Finance Minister we would perform better so if he has listed to us and transferred him from one office where we thought that he needed a transfer we will take it as it is. But we did not say that Mr. Ofori-Atta should not be given any opportunity to work with the government at all, we were saying that we thought if he wanted the Finance Minister our situation would be better.”
He continued, “If this is a position that will be superior to the Finance Minister then I should be worried but I am not sure it is. The Finance Ministry has always worked independently of others, just that there is a collaboration, I don’t think there will be another portfolio that will be bigger than the Finance Minister and that the Finance Minister will submit to that newly created portfolio, I do think so. As long as the Finance Minister is not supplicated to the new portfolio I don’t have any problem, unless it becomes clear that the Finance Minister will have to work under the new portfolio, we will have problems.”
President Akufo-Addo relieved Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta of his portfolio in government, with immediate effect, replacing him with Mohammed Amin Adams.
The other ministers who have also been removed include Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Works and Housing Minister Francis Asenso Boakye, Kwaku Agyemang Manu, Health, Kwasi Anoako Attah, Roads and Highways, Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation Hon. Dr. Kwaku Afriyie, Gender, Children and Social Protection Hon. Lariba Abudu, Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Devt Hon. Dan Botwe, Sanitation and Water Resources Hon. Freda Prempeh, Tourism, Arts and Culture Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, Greater Accra Region Hon. Henry Quartey, Oti Region Mr. Joseph Makubu.