Mahama to Swear In Two Ministers, Three Supreme Court Justices Today

President John Dramani Mahama will today, Saturday, August 29, swear in Mahama Ayariga as Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs and Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings as Minister for Environment, Science and Technology.

The ceremony will take place at Jubilee House at 10:00 a.m., with three newly approved Supreme Court nominees also expected to take their oaths of office.

The swearing-in comes two days after Parliament approved all five nominations on Thursday, August 27.

The two ministerial nominees were approved through a voice vote after Parliament adopted the report of the Appointments Committee on their vetting.

Parliament also approved the nominations of Justice Sophia Rosetta Bernasko Essah, Justice Edward Amoako Asante and private legal practitioner Anthony Forson Jnr to the Supreme Court.

However, the approval process was not without controversy.

The Minority Caucus, led by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, walked out of the Appointments Committee after objecting to what it described as the rushed consideration of the nominations.

The Minority argued that there was no immediate vacancy on the Supreme Court bench to justify fast-tracking the process and called for more time to scrutinise the nominees.

The Chairman of the Appointments Committee, Bernard Ahiafor, rejected the objection, describing the reasons given by the Minority as “flimsy”, “hollow” and “baseless”.

He maintained that the committee could not overturn a decision that had already been taken by Parliament as a whole.

With parliamentary approval now secured, Saturday’s ceremony will formally complete the appointment process for the five nominees.

The three Supreme Court nominees were nominated by President Mahama in consultation with the Judicial Council.

The administration of the relevant oaths at Jubilee House will formally mark the beginning of their new roles.