Asenso-Boakye demands government accountability on stalled flood projects
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·Joy Online
… Mr Asenso-Boakye recalled that between 2018 and 2024, the Akufo-Addo administration committed approximately GH¢540 million under the National Flood Control Programme—described as the largest direct government investment in flood control in Ghana’s history—to support drainage cons …
… Mr Asenso-Boakye recalled that between 2018 and 2024, the Akufo-Addo administration committed approximately US$540 million under the National Flood Control Programme to finance drainage construction, rehabilitation works and dredging activities across the country. …
… Agyapong merely highlighted concerns that many Ghanaians and party members have openly expressed regarding the failure of the Akufo-Addo administration to complete and operationalise the Afari Military Hospital despite having eight years in office. …
… Among the issues that generated controversy were his remarks concerning the failure of the Akufo-Addo administration to operationalise the Afari Military Hospital in the Ashanti Region despite substantial investments in the project. …
Former Minister for Works and Housing, Francis Asenso-Boakye, has disclosed that the Akufo-Addo administration invested GH¢540 million in flood control interventions over its eight years in office to help mitigate the impact of flooding across the country. …
… In an interview on Joy FM’s Top Story on Monday, June 15, Mr Kwakye Ofosu said available data show that the current administration has significantly fewer political appointees under the Office of the President than the previous Akufo-Addo administration. …
… The former minister, who said he oversaw human resource matters during the first term of the Akufo-Addo administration, explained that salaries and benefits for presidential staffers are determined by established grading structures, with some advisers receiving remuneration equiv …
… The case has attracted significant public attention because of Ofori-Atta’s central role in managing Ghana’s economy during the Akufo-Addo administration and the substantial sums allegedly involved in the transactions under investigation. …
… The case has attracted significant public attention because of Ofori-Atta’s central role in managing Ghana’s economy during the Akufo-Addo administration and the substantial sums allegedly involved in the transactions under investigation. …
… The foundations were laid during the Akufo-Addo administration. In February 2020, the Akufo-Addo Government entered into a Technical Support Agreement with Orell Füssli Security Printing Limited of Switzerland and TGN Digital Security Limited to facilitate the deployment of machi …
The Accra High Court has rejected a plea by the lead counsel for Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, former CEO of the National Petroleum Authority, to adjourn his trial on grounds of ill health, exhaustion, and an upcoming bar conference. Abdul-Hamid and seven others are on trial over allegations of extorting monies from players in the petroleum sector, with the court ordering the case management conference to resume the following day.
The Accra High Court has rejected a plea by the lead counsel for Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, former CEO of the National Petroleum Authority, to adjourn his trial on grounds of ill health, exhaustion, and an upcoming bar conference. Abdul-Hamid and seven others are on trial over allegations of extorting monies from players in the petroleum sector, with the court ordering the case management conference to resume the following day.
Former SSNIT Board Chairperson Elizabeth Ohene responds to a Chief Justice video in which he praised SSNIT's current condition and questioned what happened during the preceding eight years, arguing that the current management is also seeking strategic investors for hotels and that the institution's turnaround was not as miraculous as portrayed.
Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie made an observation during a visit to the Minerals Income Investment Fund, wondering what Ghana had been doing "in the past eight years," a comment that drew political attention. The remark has been interpreted by the opposition as a critique of the Akufo-Addo administration's record, highlighting how even neutral statements become politically charged in Ghana's context.
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia said the Gold-for-Oil programme, introduced under the Akufo-Addo administration as an emergency measure, helped Ghana avoid a severe fuel crisis during foreign exchange shortages following the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war.
Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, former Minister for Works and Housing under the NPP, says progress at the Saglemi Affordable Housing Project vindicates the private-sector participation model adopted by the previous administration, and he welcomed the current NDC government's decision to maintain this arrangement rather than return full financial burden to the state.
Dr Kingsley Agyemang, former Registrar of the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, has denied allegations of wrongdoing during his tenure under the Akufo-Addo administration. His lawyers have called on Ghana's High Commissioner to the UK and Ireland to cease public commentary on the matter, noting that investigations are already underway.
President John Mahama has named Kenneth Gilbert Adjei as substantive Minister for Defense, nearly a decade after he served as Deputy Defense Minister in Mahama's first term. Adjei, already approved by Parliament as Works and Housing Minister, takes over the portfolio following Dr Edward Omane Boamah's death and will oversee a ministry receiving a 69 percent funding increase in the 2026 Budget.
An NPP Communications Team member has criticised the government for fast-tracking the proposed Cocoa Protection Bill without broader stakeholder consultation, arguing that cocoa farmers and industry players were excluded from its development and that some provisions are too harsh, including prison terms of 10–20 years for unlawful farm conversion.
Parliament has approved a concession agreement for the reintroduction of road and bridge tolls through an electronic Public-Private Partnership system operated by a Special Purpose Vehicle to be incorporated by Rock Africa Limited. Former Defence Minister Dominic Nitiwul defended the 2021 abolition of tolls as a measure to ease financial burden on Ghanaians, but expressed support for their reintroduction under the proposed electronic system, citing efficiency gains over the previous model.
Yaw Osafo-Maafo, a former NPP Senior Presidential Advisor, cautioned that the NDC government faces electoral rejection in 2028 if it fails to deliver on campaign pledges, suggesting voters will assess performance and could remove the party from power. Akyem Oda MP Alexander Akwasi Acquah cited strong turnout at NPP constituency elections as evidence of party members' commitment to reorganizing and supporting Dr Mahamudu Bawumia's comeback bid.
Sagnarigu MP Atta Issah defended Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson against Minority claims of insufficient revenue mobilisation, citing 2025 budget figures showing a shortfall of GH¢3.46 billion against a budgeted GH¢229.95 billion, and comparing this favourably to NPP-era shortfalls of GH¢3.71 billion (2017), GH¢2.59 billion (2018), and GH¢4.34 billion (2019).
NDC Deputy General Secretary Mustapha Gbande has asserted that the evidence leading to the conviction of NPP Ashanti Regional Chairman Bernard Antwi Boasiako (Chairman Wontumi) was assembled under the previous NPP administration, originating from a July 2022 declaration by the then Minister for Lands and Natural Resources that Wontumi's mining activities were illegal.
Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has accused the NDC of political inconsistency, saying the party criticised the NPP administration's Supreme Court nominations while in opposition but is now nominating judges itself after returning to government. Afenyo-Markin acknowledged the President's constitutional authority to make such nominations but questioned whether the NDC is "a principled political party."
Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has accused the NDC of political inconsistency, saying the party criticised the NPP administration's Supreme Court appointments while in opposition but is now making similar nominations under President Mahama. Afenyo-Markin acknowledged the President's constitutional authority to nominate judges but questioned the NDC's stated principles.
Former Sekondi MP Andrew Egyapa Mercer has criticised the government for failing to take proactive measures to prevent flooding, arguing that the Anti-Flood Task Force did not organise nationwide clean-up exercises or release funds to assemblies to desilt drains before the rainy season, and that officials only became visible after lives were lost and properties destroyed.
Eugene Boakye Antwi, a New Patriotic Party General Secretary hopeful, has defended the Akufo-Addo administration's flood prevention efforts, asserting that the government invested more in tackling flooding than any other administration. He cited allocations of GH¢450 million in the first term, GH¢198 million in 2018, and GH¢250 million in 2020 for flood mitigation projects, and argued that such prevention requires proactive planning rather than reactive measures.
Ghana's Ministry of Finance alleges that the Akufo-Addo administration diverted $65 million from a World Bank-funded flood protection project (GARID) to finance Covid-19 activities. The Technical Advisor also cited another World Bank project where almost GH¢1 billion was spent on travel in 2024.
Ofoase-Ayirebi MP Kojo Oppong Nkrumah criticised the Mahama administration for slowing the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development project through expenditure controls imposed by the Ministry of Finance, dismissing government claims of increased flood control spending as propaganda and calling for the release of fully funded project resources.
The Minority Women's Caucus in Parliament has condemned a violent attack on former Dome-Kwabenya MP Sarah Adwoa Safo and is calling for a thorough police investigation. The attack, which allegedly involved firearms and intimidation during a family event in Kwabenya over the weekend, has prompted the Caucus to express solidarity with Safo and demand that those responsible face the full rigours of the law.
The Ranking Member on Parliament's Select Committee on Local Government and Decentralisation raised concerns over delays in completing major flood control projects initiated under the previous administration, warning that delays could leave thousands vulnerable to recurring floods. He noted that between 2018 and 2024, approximately GH¢540 million was committed under the National Flood Control Programme, and US$350 million was secured from the World Bank under the GARID Project for flood resilience and drainage improvements in Accra.
Former Works Minister Francis Asenso-Boakye has urged the government to account for major flood mitigation projects inherited from the previous administration, warning that Ghana's recurring flooding requires national cooperation rather than political partisanship. He cited the Akufo-Addo administration's commitment of approximately $540 million under the National Flood Control Programme between 2018 and 2024, and attributed Ghana's flood problem to inadequate drainage infrastructure, weak planning enforcement, rapid urbanisation, indiscriminate waste disposal, and climate change.
Political activist and former NPP presidential aspirant Dr Arthur Kennedy has described as "unwarranted" petitions filed against former Assin Central MP Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, arguing that his comments about the stalled Afari Military Hospital project and alleged party corruption did not breach the NPP constitution.
The New Patriotic Party has referred former presidential aspirant Kennedy Agyapong to its National Disciplinary Committee following petitions over public comments deemed detrimental to party unity. The disciplinary body has been given two weeks to investigate and submit recommendations.
Former Minister for Works and Housing Francis Asenso-Boakye disclosed that the Akufo-Addo administration invested GH¢540 million in flood control interventions over eight years, with substantial funding directed towards drainage infrastructure and flood management capacity. He urged the current administration to sustain and expand such investments while emphasizing the importance of enforcing planning regulations to address persistent flooding.
Minister of State Felix Kwakye Ofosu rejected claims that the Mahama administration inflated the Office of Government Machinery with political appointees, saying current data show 233 political appointees under the Office of the President compared to 355 under the previous administration.
Damongo MP Samuel Jinapor argues that assessing government size requires examining broader compensation structures, presidential staffers, advisers, and appointees across state institutions—not just the count of ministers and deputy ministers. He contends that while the Mahama administration appointed fewer ministers than its predecessor, a true picture of government size emerges only after examining compensation expenditures under the Office of Government Machinery.
Attorney-General Dr Dominic Ayine is scheduled to meet US Department of Justice officials to discuss pending extradition requests between Ghana and the United States. The announcement, made by Minister for Government Communications Felix Kwakye Ofosu, has renewed focus on Ghana's extradition request regarding former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.
Ghana's Attorney-General Dr Dominic Ayine is scheduled to meet United States Department of Justice officials for bilateral discussion on pending extradition requests between the two countries. The announcement has renewed attention on Ghana's extradition request for former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.
Ghana officially launched an e-visa system on 25 May 2026 to modernize visa administration and simplify travel, with the government announcing that African passport holders will not be required to pay visa fees when using the platform.