Parliament to consider presidential candidates

General news for Saturday 23 January 2021

Source: GNA

01/23/2021

Parliament is set to scrutinize those nominated by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for ministerial posts by asking the House to review the candidates and approve them in their various portfolios.

President Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, who read the President’s statement to the House in plenary sitting, referred the nominations to the Parliamentary Nominations Committee.

The 26-member Nominations Committee, chaired by First Vice President Joseph Osei-Owusu, would review the candidates to determine their suitability for the positions, after which it would report to the House when it sat in full, known under the name of plenary.

In the list submitted, some candidates who served during President Akufo-Addo’s first term of office were retained, some saw their portfolios changed, while others are newcomers.

The persons retained are Mr. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah as Minister of Information, Mr. Ken Ofori Atta for finance, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto for food and agriculture, Mr. Alan Kwadwo Kyeremanten for trade and Industry, Ms. Ursula Owusu Ekuful for Communications, Mr. Albert Kan Dapaah for Security, Mr. Dominic Nitiwul for Defense, Mr. Ambrose Dery for Home Affairs and Ms. Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration .

The others are Mr. Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu for parliamentary affairs, Mr. Kwaku Agyemang Manu for health, Mr. Kwasi Amoako Atta for roads and highways, Mr. Kwaku Ofori Asiamah for transport, Cecilia Abena Dapaah for the sanitation and water resources, and Mr. Ignatius Baffour. Awuah for employment and labor relations.

Mr. Godfred Yeboah Dame, former Deputy Minister of Justice and Attorney General, and Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, former Deputy Minister of Education, have been promoted to assume all responsibilities of their respective ministries.

Mr. Francis Asenso-Boakye for works and housing, Mr. Samuel Abdulai Jinapor for land and natural resources, Mustapha Yussif for youth and sports and Ebenezer Kojo Kum for chiefdom and religious affairs are newcomers.

Ms. Freda Prempeh, Member of Parliament for Tano North, is now Minister-designate for Works and Housing; while Mr. Anthony Cudjoe is the designated minister of public enterprises.

Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, former Minister of Education, is now Minister Designate of Energy, Mr John Peter Amewu, former Minister of Energy, is now at the Ministry of Rail Development; while Ms Mavis Hawa Koomson, former Minister of Special Development Initiatives, has been assigned to the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development.

Mr. Dan Botwe, former Minister of Regional Reorganization and Development, is the designated Minister for Local Government and Rural Development.

Dr Ibrahim Awal Mohammed, former Minister of Business Development, is now the designated Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture; with Sarah Adwoa Safo, former Minister of State for Public Procurement, is now the Minister-designate for Gender, Children and Social Protection.