A former Minister for Local Government and Rural Development from 1990 to 2001 Professor Kwamena Ahwoi has conceded that former President John Dramani Mahama partially failed in his administration because he surrounded himself with non-NDC members.
According to him on an Accra-based radio station monitored by MyNews, some of the lapses witnessed during his tenure as President could have been avoided if he had core party people around him.
“I think that the biggest mistake at the beginning of his presidency was to surround himself with people who were not core NDC members. His special advisor was not, his secretary was not, secretary to the cabinet was not, so many of them,” he revealed.
He also noted that there was a complete disconnect between the party and the presidency at the time which in his view may have created a vacuum saying “…”and so there was a divorce between the government and the party, and therefore it was not easy for the party’s programmes to have been implemented”
Mahama failure as a result of the ‘brainless kids’ he surrounded himself with – Nunoo-Mensah
Earlier this year, former National Security Advisor to former President John Atta-Mills Brigadier General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah alleged that former President John Dramani Mahama failed as President, and was eventually voted out because he surrounded himself with kids “without brains” as opposed to President Atta-Mills who had the best of people in his government.
In an interview with Happy FM recently, Brigadier General Nunoo-Mensah claimed immediately President Mahama became President, he got rid of all experienced persons and replaced them with young inexperienced ones, leading eventually to his failure.
“President Mills may he rest in peace, as a politician you must come to power with a certain mindset, Nkrumah and Mills were different. Mills is like a pastor, we sit to have a chat. Mills never failed because he had people with brains around him but Mahama came and he pushed them all away and brought the young ones, kids don’t play football,” he claimed.
He promptly denied that his comment had anything to do with being booted out as soon as President Mahama assumed the reins of government: “Never, I’m never embittered, because I have been sacked several times but I’m never bitterer because I put Ghana first. I have to be concern about how the country is being ruled,” he claimed.
The ex-soldier lost his role as Security Advisor when President Mahama ascended to power as an elected President in 2013.
Brigadier Nunoo-Mensah known for being outspoken has been a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) since its inception. He was part of the coup that overthrew Dr Hilla Limann’s government in 1981.
