There was drama at the Assembly hall of the Binduri District Assembly during the election to confirm the District Chief Executive, Hon. Ayinga Abagre Yakubu as the Assembly adopted the “Takashi” or “Buga Buga” style to force the confirmation of the President’s nominee.
The appointments of five government appointees of the Binduri District Assembly were revoked few hours before the election to confirm Hon. Ayinga Abagre Yakubu as District Chief Executive of the Binduri District and new ones re-appointed to take their place in the election to confirm the President’s DCE Nominee.
The five government appointees (Names withheld) took part in the first election that failed to confirm the DCE as a substantive DCE for the first time. The four were dismissed without any reason. Announcing the termination of the appointments, the Presiding Member, Mr. Salifu Ndego Atilata, said “the President has revoked your appointment as a member of the Binduri District”. The letter was signed by the Upper East Regional Minister.
The President’s Nominee failed to pull enough votes from the 17 assembly members to secure the nod to lead the assembly as DCE for the second time. He pulled 10 Yes votes as against 7 No votes.
Key critics of the Upper East Regional Minister, Hon. Stephen Yakubu mocked him for his failure to secure the confirmation of the DCE at the first attempt at his own backyard ( Binduri ). The likes of Hon. Emmanuel Abole, former DCE for Bolga East district, chided him for the failure and accused him and the NPP regional Chairman as ‘destroyers’ of the party. “How come you failed woefully to put your house in order and therefore bringing this shame to the president?”
But, in an interview with the media after the confirmation ceremony, the Upper East Regional Minister Hon. Stephen Yakubu in response to a question from Journalists as to why the ‘five’ government appointee assembly members had to be sack at a time when the confirmation of the President’s nominee was underway, said that it was ” something” he ( Regional Minister) did not want to talk about because it was the President’s prerogative to exercise and he had no hand in it.
Hon. Stephen Yakubu who is a former member of parliament of the Binduri Constituency and a native of the area had to literally beg assembly members to vote “yes” the nominee.
“You have punished us for long, you must do the needful, Binduri is watching, Ghana is watching, we don’t use power to punish”- The Regional minister pleaded in his native Kusual language.
The President’s nominee on Friday 15th December 2021, was eventually confirmed after the substitution of the four appointed Assembly. He received 13 yes votes out of the 17 members present and voting.
The exercise was however without some arm twisting before voting as heavy detailed military and police presence thronged the venue of the election amidst protest. It took the resistance of assembly members and the intervention of the Presiding member to get the armed security out of the hall to allow transparent voting and counting.
Prior to the confirmation of Hon. Yakubu Abagre, the Garu district also managed to confirm Hon Osman Musah as the DCE of the Garu district. He pulled 15 Yes votes as against 4 No votes.
The Upper East Region have so far confirmed 14 nominees of the president with one district standing. The President has re-nominated Anabida Issaka as DCE nominee for the Tempane District after the assembly voted 11 Yes and 13 No to reject Hon. Paul Bugri Azumah as DCE for the area.
By: Simon Agana/mywordfmonline.com