The appointment of former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta as Senior Presidential Advisor and Special Envoy for International Finance and Private Sector Investments, according to Isaac Adongo, a member of Parliament’s Finance Committee, will make it challenging for the new Finance Minister to carry out his plans.
He claimed that Mohammed Amin Adam would need to go to the executive for final approval of some measures once they had parliamentary approval, with the President then approving them through Mr. Ofori-Atta.
He clarified that this might ultimately make the Finance Minister’s position meaningless since it will have no impact on the nation’s economy or spending on JoyFM’s Top Story on February 26.
“I have reason to say that what the President has done is technically to give Mohammed Amin one job with the left and take it back with the right. The appointment of Ken Ofori-Atta is akin to having a senior Finance Minister supervising the Finance Minister.”
“If you know the way government works, the Finance Minister has to implement major policies through cabinet and through executive approval of the President, and when he is going to Cabinet or he is going to seek approval from the President, the President will consult his Advisor and his Advisor is Ken Ofori-Atta.”
“So if Ken does not agree with the policy orientation of the Finance Minister, it is as good as not even starting it because it won’t get cabinet or executive approval,”he said.
