Mahama Nominates Diana Ayamga As Bongo DCE After Death of Previous Appointee

• President John Mahama has nominated a new person to be the District Chief Executive for the Bongo District
• The previous local government head for the district, Joseph Abaa Akaseke, died in February 2026 after an illness
• Akaseke served as District Chief Executive for Bongo since April 21, 2025, after his appointment by the president

President John Mahama has nominated Diana Asokatrie Ayamga to be the new District Chief Executive for the Bongo District in the Upper East Region.

Ayamga will replace Joseph Abaa Akaseke, who passed away in February 2026, if she is approved by members of the Bongo District Assembly.

The nominee was announced in a statement issued by the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, which was shared by GTV on Facebook.

The previous District Chief Executive for Bongo, Akaseke, died at Eastside Life Hospital in Bolgatanga in the early hours of February 23, 2026, after a short illness.

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News of his death thrust his district into mourning.

Before he was appointed the local government head, Akaseke had served the people of Zorko-Goo-Awaah as an Assembly Member for three consecutive terms.

The late DCE also held several positions within the National Democratic Congress (NDC), including Bongo Constituency Youth Organiser and Constituency Secretary.

In addition to his political career, Akaseke also worked as a storekeeper at the Sirigu Integrated Senior High School and the Zuarungu Senior High School.

Questions over replacements for other deceased appointees

Meanwhile, there are concerns that Mahama has taken too long to replace Edward Omane Boamah as Minister of Defence following his death in the helicopter crash that killed eight people on August 6, 2025.

Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, the finance minister, has been heading the Defence Ministry since.

In February, the Minority in Parliament called on the president to appoint substantive ministers to the Ministries of Defence and Environment following the death of the two former sector ministers in the helicopter crash.

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Before that, the Assin South MP John Ntim Fordjour urged the President to quickly fill the leadership gap at the Defence Ministry in the wake of the El Wak stampede.

The El Wak stampede, which killed six and injured over 25 people, came a day before the 2026 budget Forson was supposed to deliver.

Fordjour, who is also the Ranking Member on the Defence and Interior Committee in Parliament, believes that this was too much pressure for one official.

"Such a sensitive portfolio in the national security architecture should not be toyed with, so I am deeply disappointed.”

Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, the Member of Parliament for Korle Klottey, is one of the names being speculated online as a potential nominee for the defence portfolio.

Bole DCE survives road crash

YEN.com.gh reported that the DCE for Bole, Abdulai Mahamud, was involved in a road crash on December 9, 2025, while travelling to Tamale.

The incident occurred at Galinzegu, near Sankpagla, in the Central Gonja District along the Yapei-Tamale Highway in Ghana's Savannah Region.

Mahamud was said to be in a stable condition and receiving the necessary medical attention right after the crash, with netizens expressing concern.

Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.

Source: YEN.com.gh