Parliament on Wednesday, adopted the Eighth Report of the Appointments Committee on the President’s nominations for Deputy Ministerial appointments and consequently approved the nominees for their various portfolios.
This brings to finality the approval of President Akufo-Addo’s list of 40 nominees for the position of Minister of State and 39 Deputy Ministers submitted to the Speaker of Parliament on April 21, 2021 for vetting and approval.
The Report tabled at the plenary covers the vetting process of four deputy ministerial nominees comprising Ms. Diana Asonaba Dapaah as Deputy Minister for the Office of Attorney-General and Justice and Hon. Lariba Zuweira Abdul for Gender, Children and Social Protection.
The rest are Hon. Martin Adjei Mensah-Korsah, Deputy Minister for Local Government and Rural Development and Hon. Amidu Issahaku Chimnia as Deputy Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources.
However, the Minority NDC MPs boycotted the approval of the four nominees in the form of a walkout because their members on the Appointments Committee did not take part in the vetting on Friday, June 11, 2021 when the nominees appeared before it to be vetted.
The group made a strong case and pushed for a re-vetting of the four nominees as they attributed their absence in the vetting to their observing the Greening Ghana Day as directed by the Speaker to have all MPs go back to their constituencies and observe the day.
Chairman of the Appointments Committee and First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei Owusu presenting the Committee’s Report stated that President Akufo-Addo submitted the list of nominees for the position of Minister of State and 39 Deputy Ministers appointed under 24 portfolios to the Speaker of Parliament on April 21, 2021.
The Committee, according to him, duly considered the President’s nominations for the Deputy Ministerial appointments and recommended them for approval by consensus after ensuring that they met all constitutional provisions among other considerations.
After a brief debate, the Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament Hon. Andrew Asiamah Amoako who was then presiding over the sitting put the motion to a voice vote where he ruled that the four nominees have been approved by the House.
The House, he said, will proceed to communicate the decision to His Excellency President Nana Akufo-Addo as Parliament having given prior approval to the nominees.
