The flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the former President, Mr. John Dramani Mahama, has announced plans to dissolve the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources due to its perceived ineffectiveness if he becomes president in 2025.
In addition, he has suggested consolidating several other underperforming ministries, including the Aviation and Railways Ministries, into the Transport Ministry.
During a Special Public Lecture at the Wisconsin International University College in Accra on Wednesday, Mr. Mahama emphasised the need for a comprehensive development strategy that diversifies focus within the sector.
We will close down the Ministry of Sanitation, one, to reduce expenditure and two I don’t see any use. The country is dirtier than when there was no Ministry of Sanitation.
Indeed, this country was cleaner when sanitation was under Local Government than as a standalone Ministry and we will close that Ministry and we will take the Sanitation schedule back to Local Government because we want to reduce government expenditure.
With cleanliness, we think that it’s the duty of the district assemblies. Every assembly has an obligation to make sure that its district is clean and so we must decentralise sanitation to the district level.
He also pointed out his intentions of merging the Transport and Aviation ministries, as well as the Information and Communication ministries, revealing that he will make appointment of DCEs based on how clean their districts are.
Because we want to reduce government expenditure, it’s not only the Sanitation Ministry, in transport, Aviation and Railway, we are going to close them down and send them to the transport ministry. We are going to combine Information and Communications again, and so we want to reduce the number of ministries.
So when we are going to change district chief executives and you have a dirty district, we’ll remove you and bring someone who can make sure that the district is clean.
It is not only the Sanitation Ministry, in Transport, Aviation and Railways, we are going to close them down and send them back to the Trasport Ministry. We are going to combine Communications and Information again. So we want to reduce the number of ministries.
Listen to the audio below:
Story by: Appiah Kubi/Ahotoronline.com
