By: Ebenezer Adu-Gyamfi / Emmanuel Ayiku For GhanaianNewsCanada | June 8, 2026 | Accra / Toronto
ACCRA / TORONTO — President John Dramani Mahama has fired a warning shot at his own government. In a strongly worded directive that has set Accra’s political community buzzing, the President has banned all Ministers of State, Chief Executives of State Institutions, and political appointees from accepting awards from private organisations without express approval from the Presidency — and has announced that a formal performance review of every minister and state CEO is now underway, with the findings set to directly inform decisions on who stays in government, who gets reassigned, and who faces the door.
The directive comes in the wake of what has been widely described as an “award fiasco” — a series of embarrassing incidents in which government ministers and appointees were seen accepting or participating in privately organised award ceremonies of dubious credibility and questionable standards. The backlash from Ghanaians was swift and sharp. The imagery of public officials collecting trophies and certificates from commercial award schemes — while Ghanaians wait for tangible improvements in their daily lives — became a focal point of public frustration, and the Presidency has moved to address it head-on.
The Presidential Directive — What It Says
The directive from the Office of the President is comprehensive and unambiguous. All government appointees are now prohibited from participating in, sponsoring, endorsing, attending, or accepting awards from private organisations — unless they have received specific authorisation from the Office of the President to do so.
The reasoning behind the ban is stated directly in the directive: “Public office is a solemn responsibility entrusted to officials by the people of Ghana. Performance cannot be measured by privately organised ceremonies or commercial award schemes whose standards are neither established nor subject to public scrutiny.”
The President was equally direct about how government performance will be measured instead. According to the directive, assessment will focus on delivery on the 2024 NDC Manifesto commitments, government’s overall development agenda, sector-specific targets agreed with supervising authorities, tangible outcomes for citizens, service delivery quality, prudent use of public resources, and policy implementation — not private ceremonies, not trophies, and not commercially driven recognition schemes.
Performance Reviews and the Reshuffle Signal
The most politically significant element of the directive is its explicit link to cabinet reshuffles. The Presidency confirmed that a comprehensive performance review of all ministers and state institution CEOs is now underway — and that the findings will directly inform decisions on “retention, reassignment, and any future Cabinet or executive reshuffle.”
The message to every minister in Mahama’s cabinet is clear: your job is not secure simply because you were appointed. It is contingent on performance. The President is watching. The results are being measured. And when the review concludes, those who have delivered will be retained or promoted — and those who have not will face consequences.
This framing is consistent with a broader pattern of accountability messaging from the Mahama administration. In London last week, Mahama warned SOE bosses that missing SIGA’s financial reporting deadline would cost them their jobs. Earlier this year, he warned audit offenders in Accra that they would either refund stolen funds or face imprisonment at Nsawam. The performance review announcement continues this pattern of accountability-first governance — at least in terms of rhetoric. Whether the reviews produce actual personnel changes, and how quickly, will be the real test.
The Award Fiasco — What Triggered the Ban
The “award fiasco” that precipitated the presidential directive reflects a phenomenon that has long existed in Ghana’s public life — the proliferation of privately run award schemes that offer recognition to politicians, public officials, and business figures in exchange for participation fees, sponsorship, or simply attendance. Critics have long argued that many of these schemes are commercially motivated, with award organisers using the participation of high-profile public figures as a marketing tool rather than a genuine recognition of merit.
When government ministers and state CEOs are seen collecting trophies from such events — particularly when they are perceived to be devoting time and energy to award ceremonies rather than the actual work of governance — public reaction is predictably negative. In a country where citizens are waiting for improvements in health services, road infrastructure, employment, and cost of living, imagery of officials celebrating themselves at commercial award events sends exactly the wrong signal.
The Presidency’s directive addresses this directly. Officials are reminded that genuine recognition comes not from “privately organised ceremonies” but from the trust of the Ghanaian people — earned through results, not ceremonies. It is a message that resonates strongly with Ghanaians who have grown frustrated with what they perceive as a gap between official self-congratulation and the everyday realities they face.
⚠️ Warning: The Viral Reshuffle List Is FAKE
GhanaianNewsCanada must draw specific attention to an important fact-check that directly affects how this story is being circulated on social media. Alongside the genuine presidential directive on awards and performance reviews, a separate document has been circulating widely on WhatsApp, Facebook, and other platforms — purporting to list specific ministers who are being sacked or reassigned in an imminent reshuffle.
That document is FAKE. The NDC has issued an explicit, formal denial. In a statement dated Saturday June 6, 2026, signed by Deputy National Communication Officer Godwin Ako Gunn, the party stated: “Kindly disregard any news of a reshuffle.” The NDC confirmed that no official communication has been issued regarding any changes to the composition of government. The party characterised the viral document as “deliberate misinformation” and warned that its spread could have legal consequences under Ghana’s Cyber Security Act.
