CEOs and ministers are prohibited by Mahama from taking "questionable awards."

All state ministers, chief executive officers of state institutions, and other political appointees have been instructed by the presidency to abstain from taking part in or collecting prizes from private organizations without first obtaining permission from the president's office. President John Dramani Mahama expressed concerns about the increasing practice of public officials being recognized by private organizations as "best-performing," "most outstanding," or "most influential" office holders. Callistus Mahama, the Secretary to the President, issued the decree in response. The Presidency claims that many of these organizations lack transparent or verifiable standards for evaluating public officials' performance, have ambiguous credentials, and are mostly unknown to the general public."His Excellency the President has expressed concern over the rising number of state ministers and chief executive officers of state institutions."