Mahama preparing to take serious action against appointees – Victor Smith

Former Ghana High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Victor Smith, has disclosed that President John Dramani Mahama is preparing to take serious action against government appointees implicated in corruption, warning that officials who assume public office to enrich themselves risk losing their positions.

Smith said the President had made it clear that he would not tolerate appointees who misuse their positions to make money, adding that Mahama was monitoring their conduct and would act when convinced that an official had engaged in wrongdoing.

“He has said that those he’s given appointments to, if they think they’ve gone there to make money, they are joking because the moment he hears something, you’re out. He fires you,” Smith said.

Speaking about the President’s position on accountability, Smith recalled Mahama making the remarks in a sarcastic manner and suggesting that some appointees would be surprised by the decisions he would take.

“He was laughing and laughing in a sort of a sarcastic way that, ‘I’ll surprise them.’ So I believe that he knows what he’s doing,” he added.

However, Smith stressed that the President must translate his warnings into action when the need arises, insisting that public officials should not be allowed to treat government appointments as opportunities to accumulate wealth.

“He must crack the whip as well when the time comes to crack the whip. We can’t just say that we’ll do it and we don’t do it,” he stated on TV3 in an interview.

He also addressed concerns surrounding recent cocaine and drug-related incidents and questions about the performance of the country’s security leadership.

Smith acknowledged that some people had questioned the President’s handling of the security heads after he summoned them for discussions on the way forward, only for further incidents to emerge.

However, he cautioned against assuming that the President would not take action simply because his next move had not been made public.

“You don’t know what he’s about to do, and I’m not the one who is going to say it here. He told you something,” Smith said.

He maintained that decisions concerning officials who had failed to perform their responsibilities rested with the president, adding that Mahama was expected to take serious decisions soon.

“He’s going to take some serious decisions very soon. He says he’s going to do something very soon, and that’s something we all get to know,” he added.