By Emmanuel Nduka
President John Dramani Mahama has directed all ministers, chief executive officers of state institutions and political appointees to stop accepting awards from private organisations without prior approval from the Presidency, citing concerns over the credibility and transparency of such recognition schemes.
The directive was contained in a statement issued on Monday by Secretary to the President, Callistus Mahama, amid growing concerns within government about the increasing number of privately organised award programmes that confer titles such as “best-performing,” “most outstanding,” and “most influential” public official.
According to the Presidency, many of the organisations behind these awards operate with unclear credentials, questionable assessment methods and limited public recognition, raising doubts about the legitimacy of the honours being bestowed on government officials.
The statement noted that in several cases, there is no transparent, objective or verifiable process used to evaluate the performance of recipients, making it difficult to determine the basis for the awards.
“The proliferation of such awards has the potential to undermine the integrity of public service, create misconceptions regarding government performance assessment, and expose the Government to unnecessary public criticism and embarrassment,” the Presidency stated.
Government maintained that public office is a responsibility entrusted to officials by the people and should not be measured by privately organised ceremonies or commercial recognition platforms whose evaluation methods are not publicly known or subject to scrutiny.
Consequently, President Mahama ordered all political appointees to refrain from participating in, sponsoring, endorsing, attending or accepting awards from such organisations unless they receive express approval from the Office of the President.
The move is aimed at strengthening accountability within government and preventing public officials from relying on unofficial recognition schemes as a measure of their performance in office.
Rather than private accolades, the Presidency said ministers and CEOs would be assessed based on measurable results, including the achievement of policy objectives, delivery of sector-specific targets, prudent management of public resources and implementation of programmes contained in the governing party’s manifesto and national development agenda.
The statement further disclosed that a comprehensive performance review of ministers and chief executives would be conducted in due course, with the outcome expected to influence decisions on retention, reassignment of responsibilities and possible cabinet or executive reshuffles.
President Mahama also urged government officials to focus on delivering tangible results for citizens instead of pursuing recognition through external award schemes whose credibility may be in question.
The directive comes days after a number of government appointees received honours at the 6th Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Awards, an event that sparked public debate over the credibility and standards used in assessing public office holders.
