Fifteen former and serving ministers of state have been honoured at the maiden Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours held in Accra last Saturday.

The awardees included former Greater Accra Regional Minister, Prof. Joshua Alabi; a former Defence Minister, Dr Kwame Addo Kufuor; a former Minister of Information, Nana Akomea; a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Hackman Owusu Agyemang; a former Minister of Tourism, Mrs Catherine Ablema Afeku; a former Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Kwamena Bartels; and a former Minister of Communications, Mr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah.

Others were former Minister of Communications and former Speaker of Parliament, Prof. Aaron Mike Oquaye; a former Minister of Local Government and a former Chief of Staff at the Presidency, Mr Julius Debrah; a former Minister of Energy, Mr Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah; Majority Leader in the current Parliament, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu; Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr John Alan Kwadwo Kyremanteng; and the Minister of Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh.

Event

Organised by Big Events Ghana, the award ceremony was meant to recognise the contributions of former and serving ministers of state towards the development of the country.

It was a night of glamour and music performances as people from all walks of life, including chiefs, musicians, actors and other distinguished personalities converged on the Movenpick Hotel to celebrate the statesmen.

Rationale

The Chief Executive Officer of Big Events Ghana, Mr Prince Makay, said the event was meant to recognise the work of ministers of state and also encourage them to give of their best to the country.

He said it was unfortunate that people viewed ministers in a very bad light, always criticising them for the woes bedeviling the country.

He said the narrative ought to change for people to appreciate that some ministers actually served and continue to serve Ghana in a diligent and patriotic manner.

“A lot of people have sacrificed themselves for this country, but nothing good has been said about them. We need to be able to appreciate their efforts and encourage others who want to step in their shoes,” he said.

On how the organisers settled on the 15 former and serving ministers for the honours, Mr Makay said both the public and a panel of experts were made to select the awardees.

“A total of 297 nominations from the public came through, and our panel of experts reviewed all the claims and made copious research on the performance of the awardees,” he said.

Reactions

Reacting to the honour, Mr Spio-Garbrah lauded the organisers for coming out with the concept.

He said people in other fields such as music, fashion and film were regularly awarded, and that it was good that public servants had also been recognised.

“This award is for public service. It is a function that not everybody appreciates because it is not everybody who can be a public servant,” he said.

For Nana Akomea, the award scheme was a step in the right direction.

He said it was his prayer that the scheme would grow and become part of the institutionalised awards schemes in the country.