Speaker confirms Sunday for swearing-in

The Speaker of Parliament, Mr. Justice D.F. Annan, has confirmed that the Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr. J.A. Kufuor would be sworn-in as Ghana's next President on January 7, as planned.

Welcoming MPs back to the House after the general elections culminating in the election of Mr. Kufuor as the new President, he said although January 7 falls on a Sunday there is no Constitutional provision which bars handing-over on that day.

"There is nothing in the Constitution which prevents a handover from one administration to the other on Sundays. As such, the ceremony must come on as scheduled," Mr. Justice Annan said. The Speaker congratulated Mr. Kufuor for winning the elections to take charge of a new government for the country.

He also congratulated all the legislators who either retained or lost their seats, as well as the new ones who have just been elected and wished the losers better luck in subsequent elections.

With regard to the transitional team currently working on the handover, Mr. Justice Annan expressed the hope that the team will do an excellent job for a smooth transition.

The House, which was almost full with both MPs who lost their seats and those who retained their seats, later met in camera to discuss the report on the approved salaries and allowances, facilities, privileges and retirement benefits for the Legislature and the Executive.

Later in an interview, some of the MPs expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the elections and the selection of a transitional team from both the government and the NPP sides to ensure a smooth handover.

Mr. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, an NPP member in the transition team, was happy about the co-operation from the government side and said although the transitional period is only six days, it would establish a good precedent for future change-over.

He suggested that in future, general elections should be held in November to allow for more time for handover. Dr. Kwame Addo-Kufuor, Minority Spokesman on Health praised the NDC Presidential Candidate, Prof. J.E.A. Mills, for conceding defeat, adding that his action has laid a good foundation for a smooth hand-over.

Mr. C.O. Nyanor (NPP, Upper Denkyira) was, however, not happy that a transitional team has been put in place. He said the Chief Directors in the various ministries could effectively brief the new ministers about the situations in their set-ups without necessarily depending on a transitional team, adding that the NPP administration would fulfill its promise to improve the economy within four years.