Ministers Panic Over Reshuffle

Posted: Daily Guide |Wednesday, 21 July 2010

By Charles Takyi-Boadu
A news story about an imminent cabinet reshuffle in the Mills administration has sent fear among Ministers, particularly those whose names popped up as likely causalities.

Sources said the news story sent shockwaves in government circles, with jittery ministers making frantic calls to the seat of government, the Osu Castle and to close associates of the president in order to get their way through in the confusing logjam.

Speculations were rife that some supposed powerful but ineffective Ministers including Information Minister John Tia, Trade and Industry Minister Hannah Tetteh, Women and Children’s Affairs Minister Juliana Azumah-Mensah and Youth and Sports Minister Akua Sena Dansua will all be shown the exit for non-performance.

Unable to control the effect of the story coming from National Democratic Congress (NDC) power house, the Ahwoi brothers’ controlled Ghana Palaver, the presidency was left with no option but to deploy a fire fighting measure to douse the spreading rumour of imminent reshuffle which government officials were shying away from commenting on, on Monday when the story broke.

The impending cabinet reshuffle, which has been dismissed as untrue, is said to be part of a re-invigorating exercise in which the president would ostensibly bring on board some fresh limbs from his much-awaited ‘team A’.

Coming from no less a pro-NDC newspaper like the Ghana Palaver, owned by the Ahwois brothers, one of whom is seen by party members as the de facto ‘Prime Minister’ of the Mills administration, the story seemed to have gained momentum.

Though Hannah Tetteh was active in her post as the Communications Director for the NDC in the 2008 election campaign, her impending removal as a Minister is likely to give Kwesi Ahwoi, the Food and Agriculture Minister, a competitive advantage in the race to pair with Vice President John Mahama in the event that President Mills is unable to contest again.

Veep’s ‘darling girl’ Hannah, DAILY GUIDE learnt, was being edged out for Kwesi Ahwoi since they were both seen as likely running mates in the event of picking the flag-bearer slot.

Though not a sure-bet in itself, what seems to have given the ministers a glimmer of hope was a statement put out by the Head of Communications at the Presidency, Koku Anyidoho, saying President John Mills had no such intention of offloading the ‘excess luggage’ in his administration.

He told DAILY GUIDE yesterday that there was no credibility in the speculations.

“As at the time of speaking with the president this morning, he stated emphatically that he had no such intentions,” he said, stressing the need for all in government to rid their minds of such fears and concentrate on duties assigned them at their respective Ministries.

Mr. Anyidoho expressed worry at the panic the speculation had succeeded in creating in government circles, especially among ministers, saying “that’s the more reason why the president instructed that I speak to the issue officially because it is important that we calm nerves and allow people to stay focused on their mandate.”

Otherwise, he said, “people are apprehensive, people are anxious, people are panicking. You don’t get any results and you don’t get anything done.”

In spite of this respite coming from the seat of government, some ministers are still apprehensive about the denial, considering the fact that not too long ago, Koku denied a similar speculation about the president’s intentions to sack some District Chief Executives (DCE) in the Northern region.

When he was asked about the issue, Koku totally denied, saying that the president had no such intentions.

But barely 24 hours after the president arrived in Accra, a statement was issued from the Castle relieving some three DCEs of their positions, making the president’s spokesperson appearing a bit unreliable.