Open letter to citizens of Ghana on the concern on the number of Presidential staffers at Office of Government Machinery

Dear Fellow Citizens, I salute you and let us keep on thanking God for granting us time, resilience and for the vestige of this Country on the path to economy recovery, which is our collective responsibility to ensure economic upturn, a breakthrough and the maintenance of same for the benefits of future generations.

Fellow Citizens, the Chapter 23 of Exodus in the Holy Bible teaches on ethical matters, so it warns us at Exodus 23.1 not to bear false witness and at Exodus 23.2 that ‘You must not follow the multitude to do evil by twisting Justice’. This among others indicates that we should not lie to pervert justice just to please the emotion or opinion of a majority on a prevailing matter or opinion because the opinion of the majority does not necessarily mean it is a true opinion. This simple mean that just because a multitude champions a particular cause does not necessary mean that cause is right or the multitude is right. This has been the national canker with the twisting of details by propagandists and uninformed persons to satisfy a gullible populace.

Folks, in our collective effort of fixing or building our dear Country we need to be guided by the declarations at Exodus Chapter 23:1 to Exodus 23:2 as stated above and speak the truth on national issues based on analytical thinking (mind). Pardon me to deviate small by citing an example of the attitude of some of our Compatriots who without analytical mind set are degrading the 1992 Constitution, including an assertion that the 1992 Constitution was framed by mostly nonentities to satisfy the then Chairman of the PNDC. This is false, hence such persons are either lazy thinkers as propounded by Hon Suhiyini otherwise they may be dishonest people and unpatriotic citizens.

It is universally acclaimed that a Society or Country where people failed or refused to read/learn about the history of their Community or Country and thus relegate their Community’s or Country’s history to the background are bound to fail. This is the main reason with some of the chieftaincy disputes making the country facing chieftaincy problems with the associated high cost of security, low economic and social activities at the affected areas due no true history, that is due to lack of codified or trustworthy documentation otherwise oral authentic history of the Chiefdom. The problem in the Small Scale Mining Sector being faced by the Country is due to the lack of studying of the history of this Country for right remedy to deal with the associated risks and the work of national looters.

Folks, Ghana has a chequered history of political upheavals. So, it is very sad that the degrading of the 1992 Constitution is led by people with good academic background or some intelligentsias who should know better and as indicated above they may be lazy thinkers because they seemed to have a very poor critical mindset, this may be attributable to our usual failure to do proper risk assessments on national issues before “running amok” with them or just following the sentiments of gullible public or the propaganda of populists or political opportunists without authenticating the info.

These lazy thinkers need to be educated that the 1992 Constitution was framed by a Committee of Constitutional luminary Experts including Dr Agyeman-Badu, then and still as Dormahene, Mr Justice Annie Jiagge, Mr LJ Chinery-Hesse, Dr K Afari Djan, Dr Charles Jebuni, Dr EVO Dankwa, Mr Ebo Bentsi- Enchill, Mrs Ofori Boateng and the UN supported Ghana by providing one of her seasoned Staff, then a UN’s Chief Legal Adviser namely Professor Dr Asante Kobea to be the Chairperson of the Committee of Experts thus it was made of Constitutional/legal and political Science luminaries supported by a visiting Ghanaian Professor in law from USA. Professor Dr Asante Kobea is the Paramount Chief of Asante Asokore so he is contactable. You may wish to know the recommendations of the Committee so Google for Report of the Committee of Experts on proposal for the draft of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.

The committee’s recommendations make very interesting reading and some of the noise by some of our compatriots on the amendment or jettison of the 1992 Constitution will be halted if they happen to read on the history of Ghana’s Constitution since 1967. The Answer why Article 78 demands majority of members to be appointed from members of Parliament besides reducing cost due to our corrupt conduct is in the report.

Another very interesting story is how the Consultative Assembly alleged by our lazy thinkers or some of our intelligentsias as mostly made of nonentities or veranda boys and girls but or veranda boys and girls had wisdom from God hence the courage, so the Consultative Assembly (made of the alleged veranda boys and girls) rejected some of the recommendations of the Constitutional experts and came out with the best Constitution for Ghana, hence it anchored the Fourth Republic that saw more than four regime changes ever in the history of Ghana.

A second very interesting story is that based on the embarrassment of a nominee for the post of Chief Justice (CJ) of Ghana during the vetting process in Parliament in 1979, so the Constitutional experts rather recommended that the President should appoint the CJ on the consultation with the Council of State with no vetting in Parliament, but the Consultative Assembly (made of the alleged veranda boys and girls) which deliberated on the recommendations of the Committee of Constitutional/legal/Political Science Experts disagreed and kicked against it and demanded a vetting of the Chief Justice by Parliament as in the 1992 Constitution.

The last very interesting story is that the Consultative Assembly (the alleged veranda boys and girls) adopted almost all of the provisions of the 1979 Constitution as drafted in 1978/1979 by the Mensah Commission as constituted in 1978 by SMC2, that is after the defeat of the SMC1’s UNIGOV Constitution in the 1977 Referendum organized by the Sole Electoral Commissioner (Dr Kinsgley ‘Nyinah). Folks thanks for the short deviation from the subject, which is very necessary to help drive my point or judgment home that no logical reasoning or risk assessment is done on National Issues.

The issue on the Office of Government Machinery especially on the number of Presidential Staffers has been a cause of worry of late. Hence, it is high time we actually dissect the budget of the Office of the Government Machinery especially the budget on the employees’ compensation for the Office of the Government Machinery and thus include the emoluments or payments to Presidential Staffers as well for facts as warned in Exodus 23:2 of not to follow the evil opinion of the majority. Hence, this submission to you is to set the pace for studies for logical public discourse on the matter with the view to come out with the way forward. You may be shocked on the details that worth’s your consumption (use) during public discourse.

The Operations (Management and Administration) of the Country is executed by employees from the Public Service, Civil Service, State Security and Safety Institutions (within the Defence and Interior Ministries), the Chief Justice and members of the Judiciary, the Speaker and Members of Parliament, the President and other Political Officer Holders including the Council of State etc.

The Office of Government Machinery (OGM) is to provide accountable, transparent, managerial, technical, administrative Services to the Presidency and other Stakeholders for the attainment of government development agenda of improving the quality of life of Ghanaians

The Office of the President has the oversight responsibility for the Government Machinery (OGM). The Office of the President is therefore well staffed to ensure the efficient Management and Administration of programmes and services that must be done to set the policy direction of the Office of Government Machinery’s. This involves Office of Chief of Staff, General Administration Cabinet Secretariat, Press Secretariat, Policy coordination and Delivery Unit, State Protocol, and Policy Evaluation and Oversight Unit. Intuitions manned by personnel from the Civil and Public Service at the OGM.

The procedure used for the delivery of services at the Office of Government Machinery is General Administration, Finance, Human Resources, Research, Information, Monitoring and Evaluation, State Advisory and Protocol Service.

Normally or as by 31 December 2016, the Office of Government Machinery included Ghana Aids Commission, Ghana Investment Promotion Center, MASLOC, State Enterprise Commission, Divesture Implementation Committee now State Implementation and Governance (SIGA), National Population Council, Scholarship Secretariat, Public Sector Reforms Secretariat, National Security Secretariat. Internal Audit Agency, Public Enterprise Commission, Office of Administration General, Millennium Development Authority etc

The Political organizational units for delivering of service at the OGM are evolved around the Office of the Chief of Staff.

Unlike in the era of past regimes, the era of Ex-President Mahama had the Savannah Development Authority as part of the OGM. President Nana departed from previous regimes, so in the first four years of the regime of President Nana Addo, he added more than 10 outlets with distinct cost centers to the normal outfits which had distinct cost centers and existed as on 31 December 2016.

These additional outlets to the OGM during the era of President Nana Addo, included the Office of the Senior Minister, Ministry of Inner City and Zongo Development, Ministry of Regional Reorganization and Development Planning, Minster of State for Finance Minister of State for Procurement (initial post for Hon Ms Adjoa Sarfo), Ministry of Business Development, Ministry of Monitory and Evaluation, Ministry of Special Development and Initiative (with three Development Authorities namely Northern Development Authority, Middle Belt Development Authority, Coastal Development Authority), Free High School Secretariat, One District One Factory Secretariat. NEIP, NABCO Secretariat. One may add Ministry of National Security. Also at the OGM is National Identification Authority. So it is logical that more presidential staffers may be required, some of these outlets are described by some Scholars as parallel institutions or some say some of these institutions were/ are Superfluous institutions at OGM. Whatever be the thinking of scholars, the era of President Nana Addo had justification for more personnel as Presidential Staffers.

Why the use of a lot of presidential staffs when we have a gang of permanent staff at the OGM should be a subject of debate. But one justifiable reason may be the fear of the PHD (Pull Him Down) Disease in the DNA of Ghanaians and another issue is a perceived different political ideology of some of the civil servants as well as their relationships with past administrations. So, the real acts of disloyalty, dishonesty, or lack of patriotism and laziness by some of the permanent staff of public institutions or the attitude of some of the public service and civil service personnel maybe the motivation for a new administration to set up parallel institutions especially at the Presidency or elsewhere thus an avenue to employ political appointees or persons who helped the President to come to Power.

It may also be based on the need for the use of different skill sets by the employment of the concept of Division of labour, through the separation of the tasks as in economy systems to enable effective focus on specific tasks as the best use of different skill sets as propounded by Adam Smith. For instance, the government setting up Agric Mechanization or Farmers Service Company as a special unit like what General Acheampong did to provide the farmers with mechanized service instead of allowing them to acquire their own machinery and would not use them effectively throughout the year as well as they may not service and maintain the equipment very well, since lack of maintenance culture is in our DNA. Furthermore, to arrest dragging of feet or sabotage and no enough time for the Administration to accept this canker.

So it was based on the reasons stated above among others, that notwithstanding the provisions of Article 195 (1) of the 1992 Constitution, which gives room for appointment by the President of persons as Public Officers which must be contingent on the requirements or provisions of the 1992 Constitution, that in 1993, the Parliament of Ghana saw the need for the enactment of the Presidential Office Act 1993 (Act463) which gives the President the unlimited power to appoint all categories of Presidential Staffers without recourse to the financial implication to the State.

This Act 463 of 1993, as the elephant in the room was generated by the NDC1 regime of President Rawlings in 1993 through Act 463 Bill that was approved by Parliament. Some Scholars regard it as a room or avenue for jobs for the boys and girls or for family and friends at the Office of Government Machinery, thus providing a room for abuse. This abuse now included additional two cost centers as the Office of the First Lady and the Office of the Second Lady with adequate staff, goods/services and assets provided to these two offices allegedly NGOs. Cry the Beloved Country (Ghanaians are capable of managing their affairs indeed). I recommend the number of Presidential Staffers should not be more than 320, above this must be scrutinized and approved by Parliament.

Folks, the number of Presidential staffers at the Office of Government machinery has been on the front burner since the 1996 election, with people expression their lofty sentiments, some of these feelings are infantile presumably not based on logical reasoning, for us to cure the associated problems at the OGM.

So, some School of thought including the leadership of the TUC are advocating for Parliament to repeal/ nullify the Presidential Office Act 1993 (Act463), others have the view that an establishment through a ceiling and not an open or blank cheque should be granted for the appointment of Presidential staffers.

It is based on the need for the cure of this national challenge, that the Office of Government Machinery in the tenure of the last two Political administrations or Presidencies in the Fourth Republic that is the era of ex-President JD Mahama and the era of President Nana Addo are the focus of study in this paper for some scientific facts and the way forward.

The President of Ghana comes to power through winning a Presidential election as stipulated by the 1992 Constitution. The Presidential election is won or to be won among other things based on the manifesto of a Presidential Candidate to the electorates nationwide as the Constituency of the Candidate and this need to be implemented as promised during the campaign.

On wining an election, the new President and his or her administration is to come to power with his or her team, members of who appreciate his or her manifesto very well or share the political ideology of the elected President and are eager to go an extra mile with or without reward for the success of the elected President. Hence, the framers of the 1992 Constitution, took cognizance of this situation and the need to ensure loyalty to the Executive Branch at all times, so they came out with provisions in the Constitution that authorize the appointments of certain public Office Holders and the highest echelon of the Security Services by the President with the duration of their services to be conterminous with the tenure of office of the President of each administration.

Also they took cognizance of the need for a common development plan or national manifesto especially in the economy (trade, industry and the Agriculture sectors). So Article 86 of the 1992 Constitution ceded the Economy Planning wing from the hitherto Ministry of Finance and Economy Planning to the National Development Planning Commission to act as provided at Article 87 of the 1992 Constitution with a long time development plan subject to tweaking to meet current state of affairs. So the Minister of Finance core function is budgeting (looking for funds and the expenditure and accounting of same) for the Administration.

It was the dream or intention of the framers of the 1992 Constitution for a common National Development Plan say in Agric sector, which will require the Presidential Candidates to tap the recommendations of the National Development Planning Commission in the preparation of their manifestos but with some small differences based on the Political ideological background.

So, the need to ensure the right staff for the success of the Executive President through the implementation of the Manifesto of each administration, was or is the reason that the Office of the President therefore Office of Government Machinery is established by Article 57 of the 1992 Constitution and by Presidential Office Act 1993 (Act463), Act 463 was enacted by Parliament of Ghana in 1993 which gives the President the unlimited power to appoint all categories of Presidential Staffers without recourse to the financial implication to the State. This is as stated above, among others is to allow the enjoyment of the benefits of the concept of Division of labour, through the separation of the tasks as in economy systems to enable effective Policy direction.

The OGM normally has several cost centers for subunits within the Presidency which include Office of the President proper, Office of the Vice President, Office of the Chief of Staff, Departments (like Protocol, etc.) Councils and Commissions. But, the OGM has three main Cost centers or budget lines namely Compensation for Employees, Goods and Services and lastly Assets or Capex

The details as tabulated below were obtained through the Google search engine, so you could authenticate the fact by please Google for Office of Government Machinery Ghana for 2016, 2017 etc otherwise the Ghana’s National budget (either the main or the revised budget) for each year.

You will be shocked with the details of seemingly overspending, sometimes over bloating of the budget of OGM and very huge expenditure by both the two Administrations which were under study. The most shocking revelation in the study is that although the Administration of President Nana Addo has the highest number of Presidential staffers because of his creation of more than 10 Ministries (parallel Agencies) at the Presidency but strangely the Compensation for Employees as Budgeted were relatively lower when compared with that for the previous regime of ex-President Mahama. Otherwise there must be something very wrong with accounting or reporting, which may be true because of dishonesty.

Folks, the revelations in the study as in the Table below on the budget for OGM from 2015 to 2023 speak volume that we need to do more studies on the subject so that we are guided by scientific facts when making our debate on national issues. So over to your Joe Lartey, my countrymen take it up because I am limited with resources due to my locked up investments since 2018.

Like the President said at the beginning of his first four years, time was not at his side to achieve his ambition within the four years granted by the 1992 constitution, so he created additional say parallel Ministries or Agencies at the Presidency or Office of the President or OGM during his first four years. These were Ministry of National Security, Office of the Senior Minister, Ministry of Special Development and Initiative, Ministry of Inner City and Zongo Development, Ministry of Regional Reorganization and Development Planning, Ministry of Planning, Ministry of Business Development, Ministry of Monitory and valuation.

President Nana Addo also established a secretariat for NABCO, National Identification Authority, Free High School Secretariat, One District One Factory Secretariat, and COVID-19 Trust Fund Secretariat.

So, although unlike previous regime, the regime of President Nana Addo perhaps created some superfluous parallel institutions including a perceived unconstitutional Agency with troops which can bite as the Ministry of National Security. It is Unconstitutional because it’s a breach of Article 85 of the 1992 Constitution which stipulates ‘No Agency or other Organization concerned with National Security shall be established except as provided for under this Constitution’. Thus he justifies the need for the appointing of more Presidential Staffers or thus the budget for OGM. Strangely, as the study shows, he did or does it at a relatively lower cost than in the administration of ex-President Mahama especially in 2016 maybe because it was an election year. Please Google for Office of Government Machinery over spent budget by over 3 Billion of Ghana Cedis. If this is really true, then it is the highest over spent Budget or budget allocation made for OGM. It is possible that funds from COVID-19 were used by the administration of President Nana Addo and this made the details to look good. A study needed on this.