Mahama Sacks All MMDCEs In First Major Decision As President
- President John Mahama has revoked the appointment of all Chief Executives for Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies
- The president also revoked the appointment of Assembly Members appointed by the previous president
- Coordinating Directors of the various districts will assume responsibility as acting chief executives
President John Mahama has sacked all Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies Chief Executives (MMDCEs).
Assembly Members appointed by the previous president have also been sacked.
Source: Getty Images
A letter from the presidency on Wednesday, January 8, sighted by YEN.com.gh, outlined the decision to revoke their appointments.
Asaase News reported that the move is part of the Mahama administration’s attempt to restructure local governance in line with its policy goals once the new government takes office.
The letter further directed that, as an interim measure, the respective Coordinating Directors of the various MMDAs will assume responsibility as acting chief executives until permanent appointments are made.
MMDCEs are typically partisan appointments, and it is commonplace for new governments to sack them from office.
Mahama became president on January 7 after being sworn in at the Black Star Square.
The Dean for Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives, Richmond Agyabeng Amponsah, told Adom News the decision to sack them was expected, though it came sooner than they thought.
"Whether it came late or not, nothing would have changed. Bawumia conceded defeat, and we all prepared ourselves, but we didn’t expect it to come today."
Calls for change to appointments of MMDCEs
Under Akufo-Addo, there were two proposed constitutional amendments to stem the partisan appointments of MMDCEs.
One sought to allow citizens to elect MMDCEs by amending Article 243(1) of the 1992 Ghana Constitution.
This was to introduce multi-party competition in local government elections by amending Article 55(3) of the 1992 Ghana Constitution.
According to an Afrobarometer survey, more than seven in 10 Ghanaians (76%) favour the election of MMDCEs.
Failed referendum
There was a failed referendum in 2019 to change the constitution to allow MMDCEs to be elected.
In September 2019, President Akufo-Addo started processes to amend Article 243(1) of the Constitution, which gives the President the power to appoint all MMDCEs.
A referendum was also planned to seek citizens' support for amending Article 55(3) of the Constitution, which bans political parties from participating in local-level elections and makes such elections partisan.
However, in December 2019, the referendum was suspended due to a perceived lack of a national consensus.
Mahama dealing with dumsor fears
YEN.com.gh reported that the government has been dealing with significant power supply fears.
As the local government changes were being made, the government held a crucial meeting to decide how to resolve a reported looming energy challenge in Ghana following the transition from the Akufo-Addo administration to the Mahama one.
Yapei-Kusawgu MP John Jinapor warned of an imminent energy crisis in Ghana because of limited backup fuel.
He blamed the outgoing Akufo-Addo government for not addressing the fuel issue even though it came up for discussion during transition meetings.
Proofread by Samuel Gitonga, Copy Editor at YEN.com.gh
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Source: YEN.com.gh
