Dr Oduro Osae, a governance expert has conceded that the position of a Deputy Regional Minister has become immaterial to the governance architecture of the country and lauded the president for abolishing the office in his second administration.

“I have also noticed the president is not appointing deputy regional ministers, I applaud him for that because the position of a deputy regional minister is gradually becoming irrelevant in our governance architecture,” he noted.

A statement signed and issued on behalf of President Nana Akufo-Addo by the Acting Director of Communication at the Presidency, Eugene Arhin stated that the president had decided that there would be no Deputy Regional Ministers and would be working with 28 ministries in his second administration.

This is a fall from the 36 ministries he worked with during his first administration, the number of ministers will not exceed 85, down from the 120 ministers who served in his previous administration and had accordingly, submitted a list of ministerial nominees to Parliament for vetting and approval.

Regarding the reduction in the number of ministers, President Akufo-Addo would be working with in his second administration, Dr Osae intimated that “although the president could have reduced the number further, the new figure is good since his new ministers will not exceed 85.

“It is good he is reducing to about 85 but I would have wished that he even reduced it further to about 80 but that notwithstanding, with the 85 it is a good reduction because this is down from the 120 ministers who served in his previous administration,

The statement said the president intended to appoint a Minister for Public Enterprises, who would be operating directly under the ambit of the presidency, and not from a ministry, who would oversee major restructuring of entire state-owned enterprises sector to improve productivity and profitability.

It said the president had also realigned Aviation, Business Development, Inner City and Zongo Development, Monitoring and Evaluation, Planning, Regional Re-organisation and Development, and Special Development Initiatives due to virtually all the special-purpose ministries had achieved the purposes for which they were established.

The statement said the Office of the Senior Minister had also been abolished and as a result a total of 28 ministries, down from the 36 of President Akufo-Addo’s first term.-3news.com