Dan Botwe lied, he’s part of the cabal that clandestinely disenfranchised SALL – Franklin Cudjoe

Franklin Cudjoe, the founding President and Chief Executive Officer of IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, has accused Daniel Kweku Botwe, the Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development Minister-nominee of being part of those who disenfranchised the people of Santrofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi (SALL), by denying them the right to vote and have a representative in Parliament.

According to him, the vetting of the nominee was full of lies and this has made Botwe lose the respect that he, Cudjoe, had for him earlier.

On his Facebook timeline, Franklin Cudjoe alleged, “I respected Dan Botwe. I now firmly conclude he is part of the cabal that clandestinely disenfranchised SALL. He has told lies at vetting!!”

During his vetting on Monday, the former Regional Reorganisation and Development Minister said his outfit was not mandated by the laws of the land to create constituencies or districts.

To Dan Botwe, this charge lies on the shoulders of the Electoral Commission and the Ministry of Local Government. As such, he and the Ministry he represented during Akufo-Addo’s first term - a ministry which has since been scrapped - cannot be held responsible for the disenfranchisement of residents of SALL during the 2020 parliamentary elections.

“Mr Chairman, let me emphasise that the Ministry for Regional Reorganisation and Development for that matter, as a former minister, we had nothing, absolutely nothing to do with the creation of districts or constituencies by [the] Electoral Commission and so I have no business answering these questions unless for educational purposes.

In response to a petition sent to the Chairman of the Committee against his appointment, Dan Botwe told Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Monday:

“But when people have petitioned, you need to educate them on what they do not understand or deliberately don’t want to understand what the constitution says.

People may have a problem with the Electoral Commission’s decision not to let them vote in parliamentary elections. It is a matter for the EC but it has nothing to do with the Ministry for Regional Reorganisation.”

A joint committee from Akpafu and Lolobi Traditional Areas has petitioned the Appointments Committee of Parliament to reject Daniel Botwe’s appointment to head the Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development Ministry.

The joint committee, in a statement, blamed Mr Botwe for his significant role in the removal of Lolobi and Akpafu from the Hohoe Municipality despite their objection.

Dan Botwe's now-defunct Ministry was created mainly to create six new regions, which they did.