A group of former Municipal, Metropolitan and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) in the Ashanti Region have launched a blistering attack on former District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) Administrator, Irene Naa Torshie Addo, accusing her of misleading delegates and attempting to shift blame for the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) 2024 electoral losses.

In a strongly worded statement, the Concerned Former MMDCEs said the former MP for Tema West supervised “erratic, inconsistent and meagre” disbursement of the Common Fund—actions they claim crippled local development, angered communities and significantly affected the party’s fortunes in 2024.

“She failed at DACF but wants to blame Bawumia” former MMDCEs fired.

The group says Naa Torshie has been telling delegates in the Ashanti Region that former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia — then head of the Economic Management Team — failed to stabilize the cedi and refused to intervene for the release of DACF arrears.

But the MMDCEs insist her claims expose a “fundamental misunderstanding” of Ghana’s governance structure.

“The Vice President does not supervise the Common Fund. He has no statutory mandate to determine when the Fund is released,” the statement stressed.

They argued that as a former Deputy Minority Whip and lawyer, Naa Torshie should know that the Economic Management Team is only advisory and has no operational power over DACF disbursement.

MMDCEs accuse Naa Torshie of hoarding funds, running ‘a procurement shop’

The former appointees alleged that the ex-DACF Administrator repeatedly sidestepped her legal obligations under Act 455 by withholding funds and instead turning her office into what they described as a “procurement outfit.”

They claim her office awarded contracts and purchased cutlasses, boots, desks, streetlights, jerseys and other items—often without consulting assemblies, leaving real development needs unattended.

They also accused her of:

Unilaterally allocating funds for fumigation exercises that allegedly never happened

Awarding contracts for toilets, water systems and school infrastructure from Accra

Selectively choosing beneficiary schools

Causing the Assemblies to lose DPAT VI support due to refusal to release counterpart funding

“Don’t hide behind gender; accountability has nothing to do with being a woman”

Responding to reports that Naa Torshie sometimes attributes criticisms to misogyny, the MMDCEs pushed back strongly:

“Irregularities and improper conduct have nothing to do with gender. Right is right, wrong is wrong.”

They maintain that her administrative style sparked grassroots frustration, widening the disconnect between government and voters ahead of the 2024 elections.

Contracts allegedly linked to her ‘inner circle’

The statement also revived long-standing allegations within party circles that nearly 90% of DACF contracts under her watch were awarded to close associates—including, they claimed, her husband, who they suggest has ties to the opposition NDC.

“No committee blamed Bawumia for 2024 defeat”

The group described her attempts to shift blame to Dr Bawumia as politically self-serving.

“She should be the last person to point fingers,” they asserted, adding that neither internal party committees nor external research bodies ever attributed the election loss to the former Vice President.

The former MMDCEs said they felt compelled to “speak the truth” to prevent delegates from being misled as key internal elections approach.

“We cannot build a stronger party by distorting the past. Let us commit to honesty. Let us safeguard unity. And let no individual mislead delegates for personal ambition."

The statement was signed by six former Ashanti regional MMDCEs, including Maxwell Ofosu Boakye (Suame), Michael Amoah Awuku (Atwima Nwabiagya South), and Prince Osei Tutu Karikari Brempong (Atwima Kwanwoma), among others.