Parliament Releases Schedule For Vetting Akufo-Addo’s Ministerial Nominees

Parliament has published a timetable for the vetting of the first batch of ministerial nominees as announced by President Nana Akufo-Addo for his second term in office.

The month-long vetting has been scheduled to begin from Wednesday, February 10 and end on Tuesday, March 9, 2021.

First to be vetted by the House’s Appointment’s Committee on February 10 is Health Minister-Designate, Kwaku Agyeman Manu mainly because of the increasing cases of COVID-19 in the country.

He will be followed by the National Security Minister-Designate, Ken Dapaah on the same day.

Minsters Designate for Roads and Highways, Kwasi Amoako-Atta, Communications and Digitization, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful and Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta will have their turn on Tuesday, February 16, 2021.

Regional Ministers will appear before the committee beginning Friday, February 26, 2021, with the Ministers designate of the Western Region, Greater Accra and Eastern Regions.

President Akufo-Addo on Thursday, January 21, 2021, named 46 persons he has nominated to fill various ministerial portfolios.

The list contained some individuals who had served as ministers in his first term.

Ranking Member of the Appointments Committee, Haruna Iddrisu, had said priority will be given to the scrutiny of some nominees but is inviting memoranda from the public on the nominees as stipulated by the Constitution ahead of the vetting process.

“The Appointments Committee has met, and we are requesting for public memoranda in respect of all the president’s nominees for all the ministerial positions. We are expected to commence betting on the 10th of February. Priority will be given to some ministers, in particular, Health because of the COVID-19 situation in the country, and probably he will be the first minister to be considered by our committee followed by those other ministers of National Security and Finance. Our clerk is working to get the publication to all the media houses,” he said.

But already some key personalities including IMANI Africa President Franklin Cudjoe expects more stringent scrutiny of Mavis Hawa Koomson and Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, the nominees for the Fisheries and Communications and Digitalization portfolios respectively.