‘Akufo-Addo’s reshuffle is dead on arrival, came after collapse of his government’ — Deputy Minority Leader

Deputy Minority Leader, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah

President Akufo-Addo's long-awaited cabinet reshuffle has come too late and will not be enough to revive the country’s economy, says Deputy Minority Leader Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah.

In a critique of the move, Mr. Armah-Kofi Buah described the reshuffle as "simply dead on arrival."

He argued it has been "long overdue" and only took place when the government is "already collapsing".

The Ellembele MP questioned why it took the President so long to realise the "underperformance" of his ministers.

"Why did he not act earlier when the demands for change from the people of Ghana, the minority, and even prominent figures within his own party, including a significant number of the majority caucus members were so pronounced?” he quizzed.

He continued, "Now at the tail end, with barely 10 months to the elections, the new ministerial team will certainly face a steep learning curve. It is unrealistic to expect them to reverse and salvage the course of a collapsing government within such a short space of time."

Cabinet shake-up:
Some of the high profile ministers who where removed include the Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta, Minister of Health Kwaku Agyeman Manu, and Minister of Roads and Highways Kwasi Amoako-Atta.

These ministers had come under criticism for their handling of various issues in their sectors.

To replace them, the President nominated a new crop of ministers including Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye as the new Health Minister, Ophelia Hayford as Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, and Francis Asenso-Boakye moving from Works and Housing to the Ministry of Roads and Highways.

Aside bringing in few fresh faces, some existing ministers were also reassigned to new roles.

Ambrose Dery who exited as Interior Minister was reappointed as Minister of State at the Office of the President.

Meanwhile, Henry Quartey who was Greater Accra Regional Minister moved to the Interior Ministry.

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah also move from the Information Ministry to the Works and Housing previously held by Asenso-Boakye.