Gender, Children and Social Protection Minister-designate Otiko Afisa Djaba will know her fate today as parliament votes on her nomination.
On Friday, 3 February, the Minority in Parliament pushed for the vote to be cast immediately, but the Majority insisted the vote be deferred to today. Speaker of Parliament Prof Mike Oquaye ruled in favour of the Majority.
Debating Ms Djaba’s approval, Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu said: “She does not have our support and she will not have our support until she behaves in a manner befitting a minister.”
All the Minority legislators on the Appointments Committee voted against her approval citing her inability to undertake her national service as well as her posture during her vetting as reasons.
However, the Committee as a whole recommended Ms Djaba and other nominees for approval by majority decision despite Ms Djaba’s refusal to apologise for describing former President John Mahama as “evil”, “wicked” and “an embarrassment” to people of the regions up north.
Mr Iddrisu maintained that Ms Djaba’s failure to participate in a one-year service to the nation after her undergraduate studies at the University for Development Studies disqualified her from public service.
Mr Iddrisu said he was “referring to Act 426 section 7 of the Constitution”, adding: “It is also a national obligation. She, in her answers, was forthright and was candid with the committee that ‘I have not done national service’. Therefore, can she work in the public service of Ghana and hold the high office of a minister of state?”
Act 426 section 7 of the Constitutions deals with matters concerning persons liable to national service and instructs against employment contrary to the provisions of the Act.
It states:
“(1) A person who has not commenced and completed his period of national service shall not:
(a) obtain employment outside the Scheme; or
(b) be employed by any other person outside the Scheme; or
(c) be engaged in any employment outside the Scheme, whether self-employed or otherwise, without the prior permission, in writing, of the Board.
(2) It shall be the duty of every employer to ascertain from every employee, upon his appointment, whether or not he is liable to national service and if he is, the employer shall notify the fact to the Board forthwith.”
However, Suhum MP Frederick Opare-Ansah pointed out that the requirement of ministers is similar to that of parliamentarians and if parliamentarians were not requested to present a national service certificate before being cleared to contest as MPs, it would be needless to request for a national service certificate from Ms Djaba.
Meanwhile, Ms Djaba has written to parliament saying she thought she was exempted from doing national service by law due to her age.
Below is her full letter to parliament:
P.O. Box CT8799
Cantonments
Accra
2nd February, 2017
The Chairman
Appointments Committee
Parliament of Ghana
Parliament House
ACCRA
Dear Sir,
FURTHER EXPLANATION ON NON-PARTICIPATION IN NATIONAL SERVICE SCHEME
I am writing to clarify responses I gave in answer to a question posed to me about my national service during my appearance at the Appointments Committee, as part of the vetting processes to assume the office of Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection.
I wish to explain further that I did not undertake National Service upon completion of a course of study at the University of Development Studies (UDS), Wa Campus, in 2009, because I was informed that persons who were over forty (40) years of age were exempt from national service.
I completed UDS in 2009 at the age of 47, and consequently, was under the impression that I was exempt from national service.
As a Ghanaian patriot, who has worked in the most inhospitable parts of Ghana like the Sissala District for over six years, and provided various services to my nation in many other fields of endeavour, it would be inconceivable that I would deliberately abstain serving my nation.
I hope that this explanation would inform your decision in respect of my non-participation in the National Service Scheme upon completion of UDS in 2009.
Yours faithfully,
Otiko Djaba
Minister-Designate, Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection
Source: Ghana/AccraFM.com
