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Mahama's power curtailed - Local governance expert
Ebenezer Akuoku Frimpong who also doubles as the District Chief Executive (DCE) for the Sekyere Central District of the Ashanti Region revealed that the president per the 1992 constitution is the only one mandated to hire and fire people who serve in his government.
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Ebenezer Akuoku Frimpong who also doubles as the District Chief Executive (DCE) for the Sekyere Central District of the Ashanti Region revealed that the president per the 1992 constitution is the only one mandated to hire and fire people who serve in his government.
He added that the pressures brought on him by the Asanteman Traditional Council leading to the resignation of the mayor of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) Kojo Bonsu defeats this purpose.
Related:Kojo Boss
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“This will not augur well for the local governance system. It is only the president who can hire and fire. The president is the appointing authority. The powers of the president are being curtailed here," he said.
He also noted that though traditional authorities wield some form of power following the indirect rule system of governance, such powers have somehow been censored in the post-colonial era.
Akuoku Frimpong who spoke on a Kumasi based radio station emphasised on the significance of traditional authorities indicating that they must be consulted at a large extent in the local governance system.
“They play a pivotal role in governance bearing in mind they wield power before the advent of the Whiteman. Even though you are appointed by the president, you need to take their views into consideration in the day-to-day running of your administration," he added.
Read also:Kojo Bonsu
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He therefore urged government appointees to consulting traditional authorities on issues of land, budget and developmental projects in their areas of authority but was quick to add that they must not seek their consent when it comes to executive decisions
“Traditional authorities perform traditional duties and are custodians of the land. MMDCEs on the other hand are also expected by the law to be act and execute executive decisions. If a representative of the traditional authority was appointed to join a committee it is not out of order," he stressed.
Background
The Chief Executive Officer of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) turned in his resignation yesterday July 12, 2016 following calls for his removal from the highly influential Asanteman Traditional Council.
The council gave a week’s ultimatum for the sacking of Kumasi’s embattled mayor. The ultimatum was on the back of an apology letter by Kojo Bonsu to the council after he allegedly took a unilateral decision to remove Amoamanhene, Nana Agyenim Boateng from the Kejetia Market project board without informing the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.
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