Assets declaration: Why the grace period for defaulters? – Charles Owusu asks Mahama

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Governance advocate, Rev. Charles Owusu, has said that President John Mahama should have honoured his pledge to outrightly sack appointees who failed to meet the March 31 deadline for asset declaration.

Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Rev. Owusu stated that Mahama should have exercised his constitutional authority and enforced the deadline.

“The president gave a directive, and some appointees decided to default. We should have sacked them immediately because leadership is about authority,” he said.

President Mahama, on Monday, May 5, announced that all appointees who defied his directive on asset declaration will forfeit their four-month salaries.

These salaries, he explained, will be donated to the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, also known as MahamaCares.

He further disclosed that all appointees who fail to declare assets by May 7, 2025, will be dismissed.

However, while supporting the sanctions, Rev. Owusu argued that the grace period was unnecessary, especially after the President initially vowed to dismiss defaulters outright.

According to him, Mahama should have named and shamed the appointees who were being sanctioned.

“Who are the people who were sanctioned? Because we don’t know them,” he said. “President Mahama must mention the names of those who failed to comply and sack them publicly.”

Additionally, Rev. Owusu suggested that the names of those who complied and the defaulters should be published to serve as a deterrent.

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