Nana Ato Arthur addressing the participants
Nana Ato Arthur, Head of the Local Government Service has described as unprofessional, the way some District Coordinating Directors leak official information or documents of the various assemblies to the general public or the media.
He has therefore cautioned Coordinating Directors and other civil servants in the local government service to desist from such acts as it affects the work of the assemblies.
“You are accountable to the District Chief Executives and so you should be professional in the discharge of your duties and put your expertise at their disposal and not to leak official information”, he stressed.
“You belong to various political parties, that I agree, but for you as head of administration in the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to leak official information is unprofessional”, he added.
He continued “If you think the assembly is embarking on a project and you suspect that the figures had been bloated, the best thing to do is to go to the internal auditor with the District Chief Executive for clarification rather than taking photographs of the documents and leaking it to the general public.
“I know some of you want to be Chief Directors but I do not think the best way to get to such position is for you to leak official information to the public”, he indicated.
Nana Ato Arthur gave the warning at the opening of the 4th Annual General Conference of the Association of District Co-ordinating Directors, Ghana (ASDCOD) in Takoradi in the Western Region on Wednesday.
The conference which is held annually is to take stock and review activities of the Coordinating Directors over the period and plan for the coming year.
The three-day conference was on the theme: “Quality Leadership for Efficient and Effective Management of Local Government Administration in Ghana”.
He disclosed that the Local Government Service was undertaking a number of reforms to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery in order to enhance productivity.
He indicated that he supported the election of MMDCEs on nonpartisan basis since it would make the elected accountable to the people and not to an appointing authority.
Mr Samuel Donkor, Coordinating Director of the Tema Metropolitan Assembly and the acting president of the association, reminded his colleagues to adhere to the roles and responsibilities of Coordinating Directors.
He gave the assurance that they would discharge their duties professionally and ensure effective management of resources and implementation of all government policies and programmes in the Assemblies.
The Western Regional Minister, Dr Kweku Afriyie noted that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s vision of ”Ghana beyond Aid” status could be achieved if local resources were efficiently managed to attain the desired developmental goals.
The conference was chaired by Nana Kobina Nketia V, Omanhene of Essikado Traditional Area.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi