Akufo-Addo must be doing something right if 38 NDC MPs voted for ministerial appointees - Ellen A. Daaku

A member of the New Patriotic Party Communications Team, Ellen Ama Ofosuaa Daaku, has said that president Akufo-Addo must have done something right for the minority in parliament to have approved his ministerial appointees.

According to her, if the minority wanted to resist the nominees’ approval, they would have convinced some members of the majority to side with them but they rather endorsed them.

She added that for the NDC, this is not the time to blame Akufo-Addo but rather they need take a look at where the problem is and solve it.

Speaking on Good Morning Ghana show, she said “From everything that has happened, it is obvious to me that the NPP and the president is doing something right. If you can get 38 of your members to vote for his appointees and typical of the NDC, instead of looking for where the problem is and solving it, you are blaming Akufo-Addo who the constitution gives the right to nominate ministers. The constitution also gives full powers to parliament to say no to those ministers. The president does not have absolute powers which is why we call something checking each other.

“So it was the duty of parliament and the NDC minority if they felt so strongly about this to get their people to whip them in line and in fact move over to the majority side and get some to come and vote on their issue. Obviously, you own members you can’t convince them how much more getting the majority side. So, on this issue definitely, the president must be doing something right.”

Parliament approves all six nominees, two Supreme Court Justices:

Parliament on Friday, March 24 approved all six ministerial nominees as well as the nominees of the supreme court of President Akufo-Addo after a heated debate, 24 hours prior, and a tense voting process.

Final results declared by Speaker Alban Bagbin showed that all nominees got more votes than the minimum of 138 votes required because out of the 275 eligible voters, there were three absent.

Some Members of Parliament (MPs) of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) did not adhere to the decision of the party to vote against the approval of the nominees.

Kobina Tahiru Hammond (MP for Adansi Asokwa) was approved as the Minister of Trade and Industry and Bryan Acheampong (MP for Abetifi) as the Minister of Food and Agriculture.

Other nominees who were approved include Stephen Asamoah Boateng, as Ministry of Chieftaincy; Mohammed Amin Adam, Minister of State (Ministry of Finance), and Osei Bonsu Amoah, Ministry of Local Government.

Stephen Amoah, the Member of Parliament for Nhyiaeso, was also approved as the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry.

The Supreme Court nominees who were approved include George Kingsley Koomson, Justice of the Court of Appeal, and Justice Ernest Yao Gaewu, Justice of the High Court.



YNA/DA