Can Akufo-Addo fire Adu Boahen when he is absent from Ghana? – Ablakwa

The Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has raised questions about the procedural propriety of the sacking of the Minister of State (in Charge of Finance), Charles Adu Boahen.

In a tweet shared on Monday, November 14, 2022, the MP intimated that the president should not be the one to sack Adu Boahen since he is out of the country.

He added that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, who is the acting president due to Akufo-Addo’s absence, is the person mandated to fire government appointees.

“From my unimpeachable tracking of President Akufo-Addo; he left Ghana yesterday (Sunday 13/11/2022) on a private visit to London aboard British Airways.

“Considering the constitutional provision under Article 60(8) which has been further anchored by a Supreme Court pronouncement to the effect that whenever the President is absent from Ghana the Vice President performs the functions of the President until the President returns, shouldn't Acting President Bawumia be the one to fire the disgraced Charles Adu Boahen?

“Can we be certain that President Akufo-Addo's purported dismissal of Mr. Adu Boahen today which is expected to take "immediate effect" per a presidential statement dated November 14, 2022 meets Ghana's constitutional requirement?” parts of the MP’s tweet read.

The President sacked his Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Charles Adu Boahen, on Monday, November 14, 2022.

This was contained in a statement issued by the presidency on Monday, which indicated that the dismissal was to take effect immediately.

“The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has terminated the appointment of the Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Charles Adu Boahen, with immediate effect,” the statement read.

Providing reasons for the dismissal, the president said that it is based on the knowledge that allegations of corruption had been levelled against the minister.

The allegations, the statement added, are in line with an undercover investigative piece by Anas Aremeyaw Anas.

The statement added that the Office of the Special Prosecutor is to investigate the matter.

“After being made aware of the allegations levelled against the Minister in the exposé, ‘Galamsey Economy’, the President spoke to Mr. Adu Boahen, after which he took the decision to terminate his appointment, and also to refer the matter to the Special Prosecutor for further investigations.

Earlier, GhanaWeb reported how Charles Adu Boahen was mentioned in the investigative video as follows:

Charles Adu Boahen, Minister of State in Charge of Finance, has alleged that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, needs just USD200,000 as an appearance fee and some positions by an investor for his siblings to get his backing and influence in establishing a business in Ghana, Anas Aremeyaw Anas has reported.

View the MP's tweet below:



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