Akufo-Addo dismisses SSNIT DG; set to hand over April 15

The Director-General of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Dr. John Ofori-Tenkorang, has been asked by President Nana Akufo-Addo to leave his post within a week.

The reason for his dismissal is yet to be determined.

In a letter signed by the Secretary of the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, on April 8, 2024, Dr. Ofori-Tenkorang was asked to hand over his official duties to the Deputy Director-General, Investment and Development at SSNIT, Kofi Bosompem Osafo-Maafo.

The handover of office to Mr. Osafo-Maafo is to take effect on April 15, 2024.

“Reference is made to your appointment letter dated July 1, 2019, issued by the Public Services Commission. In accordance with paragraph 8 of the said appointment letter, I regret to inform you that the President has terminated your appointment effective April 15, 2024, with three (3) months’ salary in lieu of notice.”

You are directed to hand over your office to Mr. Kofi Bosompem Osafo-Maafo and proceed to collect any terminal benefits you may be entitled to,” excerpts of the letter stated.

However, the termination of Dr. Ofori-Tenkorang’s appointment has sparked comments from some experts, such as the Founding President of IMANI Africa and a governance expert.

Reacting to this new change, the Founding President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, contended that the lack of explanations and reasons for the dismissal of some directors of state institutions by President Akufo-Addo is alarming.

“First, it was the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) board and its commissioner that got axed crudely by an executive fiat—no reasons given. However, under the previous board, Ghana has, for the first time, attained 14% tax to GDP (from 11–12% for many years), a critical milestone under Ghana’s IMF programme.”

“Now, SSNIT’s Director-General, who has 9 months left of his tenure, has been sacked by the President with immediate effect. There are no reasons given for terminating the DG,” he said in a Facebook post.

Too, a professor and governance expert, Professor Enoch Antwi, also highlighted the need for President Akufo-Addo to give Ghanaians reasons for the termination of some state officeholders, although he has the authority to hire and fire.

“It is wrong for somebody in public service to be terminated without any reason given to that.”

“Even though the president has the power to fire, we, the public, have the right to know what he did because there are a lot of scandals going on. It is not good to see these kinds of scandals going on in this country and in governance at this time,” he said in an interview on TV3 on April 9, 2024.

Prof. Antwi added that the appointment of Mr. Kofi Bosompem Osafo-Maafo as the new Director of SSNIT establishes the family and friends government that the President has been accused of running.

“It raises a lot of eyebrows because there are many people who qualify to be the DG of SSNIT; why is the son of the senior minister, Honourable Osafo-Marfo’s son? Meanwhile, there are other people who really qualify to do that.”