The Presidency has barred Ministers, Chief Executive Officers of state institutions and other political appointees from accepting or participating in privately organised award schemes without prior approval from the Office of the President.
The directive, signed by Secretary to the President Callistus Mahama, follows concerns by President John Dramani Mahama over the growing practice of public officials receiving honours from private organisations claiming to recognise the country’s “best-performing”, “most outstanding”, or “most influential” office holders.
According to the Presidency, many of these award organisers have limited public visibility, unclear credentials and assessment processes that are not open to public scrutiny.
“His Excellency the President has noted with concern the increasing trend of Ministers of State, Chief Executive Officers of State Institutions, and other public officials participating in and accepting awards from various private organisations purporting to recognise them as the ‘best-performing’, ‘most outstanding’, or ‘most influential’ public office holders,” the statement said.
The Presidency warned that the proliferation of such awards risks undermining the integrity of public service, creating false perceptions about government performance and exposing the administration to avoidable criticism.
Consequently, public officials have been directed to “refrain from participating in, sponsoring, endorsing, attending, or accepting awards from such organisations unless expressly authorised by the Office of the President.”
Government stressed that performance would instead be measured through “tangible outcomes, measurable impact, effective service delivery, prudent management of public resources, and the successful implementation of government policies and programmes.”
The directive comes shortly after several government officials were honoured at the 6th Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Awards in Accra, an event that drew widespread public criticism.
