Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia (L) and Godwin Edudzi Tameklo (R)
The Acting Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Godwin Edudzi Tameklo, has questioned the moral standing of former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia to make a critique of President John Dramani Mahama over recent events in the country.
The legal expert stated that Dr. Bawumia forfeited his right to speak out and criticise the current government over issues such as mass dismissals and appointment revocations, when he failed to demonstrate leadership during his tenure in the previous administration when similar incidents of mass appointment revocations occurred in 2017.
In a Facebook post on Friday, February 21, 2025, Tameklo recounted several incidences that unfolded, specifically mentioning how individuals whose appointments were revoked in 2017 under the NPP government had their suits dismissed by the courts, all while the government remained watchful.
He accused Dr. Bawumia of failing to speak out against such injustices and neglecting to offer sympathy or an apology to those affected, calling him out for his failure to demonstrate leadership.
“I recall vividly the letter from Hon Yussif, the National Service director then, now MP for Yagaba Kubori, withdrawing the appointments of new Regional and District Directors of NSS. The law firm I practised from, went to court to challenge these mass withdrawals.
“The Judge refused and dismissed our suit. For 8yrs these innocent Ghanaians suffered quietly. Mr Former Vice President, you had a glorious opportunity to have called your people to order and stopped these things forever. You simply refused or neglected to show leadership. What is your moral basis for your call to President Mahama?” he queried.
The NDC stalwart further referenced how former Senior Minister Yaw Osafo-Maafo, during his ministerial vetting, hinted at laying people off, yet received silence from prominent figures, including religious leaders.
He also highlighted how he strongly cautioned against mass dismissals during the court proceedings, where he represented the affected employees who had been laid off.
“I recall former Senior Minister, Nana Yaw Osafo-Maafo during his ministerial vetting, saying that “we will quietly lay them off”, religious leaders kept quiet because the people were being treated badly and were perceived to be NDC members. I remember cautioning against such mass dismissals in the past especially when I was going to court to defend the case against the NSS. Because often the people who suffer are just desperate young Ghanaians who are just looking for jobs.”
Edudzi Tameklo bemoaned the current development, attributing it to governments conducting mass recruitments and appointments into the public service sector just months before an election where the incumbent could potentially be voted out of power.
He argued that an amicable agreement among politicians to refrain from such practices would help eliminate incidents like the current situation, which has left many affected individuals unemployed.
“… We should get to the point where we can all agree that such mass recruitments should be avoided three months to the next election. We all have the responsibility to young people of this country to design the future. Dr Bawumia, you lost the opportunity in 2017 to show leadership,” he wrote.
His comments come on the back of Dr. Bawumia’s criticism of President John Dramani Mahama for dismissing public service workers employed under the Akufo-Addo government just days before leaving office.
According to Dr. Bawumia, Mahama’s decision to dismiss public workers employed by the previous government is a threat to democracy.
“Since assuming office, however, the government of President Mahama has pursued a series of actions targeting Ghanaians who were legitimately employed during the previous administration. It is ironic that a party which campaigned on the wings of jobs for all Ghanaians is arbitrarily dismissing the same Ghanaians, rendering them jobless, just because a different government employed them to put their talents to bear on the nation’s development and earn income to cater for themselves and their families.
“The least a party that campaigned on jobs could do under conditions of unemployment is to also innovate and create jobs rather than dismiss people,” he added.
Dr. Bawumia continued, “Regrettably, these dismissals have been extended to directors who are public servants and not politicians. In some of the cases, the only reason for dismissal was that the persons whose livelihoods have been destroyed are known to or related to politicians as if to suggest that they cannot live independent professional lives.
“However qualified they are, there are also reports of government’s intention to terminate the appointments of persons performing critical jobs such as security personnel, nurses, and teachers simply because they were appointed during the tenure of the previous administration. That will be most unfortunate.”
MAG/EK
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