Samuel Atta Akyea Explains Why He Clashed with Nana Akufo-Addo

Date: August 11, 2026
By: Ebenezer Adugyamfi/ Emmanuel Ayiku for GhanaianNewsCanada

Former Minister for Works and Housing and former Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South, Samuel Atta Akyea, has opened up about his relationship with former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, explaining some of the disagreements that developed between the two long-standing figures of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Atta Akyea, who served in Akufo-Addo’s government from 2017 to 2021, has indicated that his disagreements with the former president were not necessarily rooted in personal hostility but rather differences over issues of principle and the way certain matters were handled.

His latest comments provide an insight into the internal dynamics of the former administration and the relationship between a president and one of his ministers who had been regarded as a prominent member of the NPP’s legal and political establishment.

A relationship that went beyond politics

Samuel Atta Akyea has had a long political association with Nana Akufo-Addo.

Before becoming President of Ghana, Akufo-Addo represented Abuakwa South in Parliament. Atta Akyea later succeeded him as the Member of Parliament for the constituency, beginning his parliamentary career in 2009.

The two therefore had a political relationship that predated Akufo-Addo’s presidency.

When the NPP won the 2016 presidential election, Akufo-Addo appointed Atta Akyea as Minister for Works and Housing. He remained in that position during the first term of the administration.

His time in government, however, was not without disagreements.

Atta Akyea speaks about the clashes

In his latest comments, Atta Akyea explained that there were occasions when his views differed from those of the former president.

The former minister’s account offers a glimpse into the tensions that can emerge within political administrations when ministers and presidents have different perspectives on policy, decision-making or the handling of government affairs.

Rather than portraying the disagreements as a complete breakdown in their relationship, Atta Akyea has sought to explain the circumstances that led to the clashes.

His comments are particularly significant because political disagreements within governments are often discussed publicly only after officials have left office.

By speaking about his experience, Atta Akyea has added another perspective to the growing public discussion about the Akufo-Addo administration and some of the internal dynamics that shaped its eight years in power.

The 2021 Cabinet decision

One of the issues surrounding Atta Akyea’s relationship with the former president is the decision not to retain him as Works and Housing Minister following the NPP’s victory in the 2020 presidential election.

The former minister has now described that decision as a misjudgment.

According to a separate report published on August 11, 2026, Atta Akyea expressed disappointment over not being appointed to serve in Akufo-Addo’s second administration and argued that the decision was a mistake on the part of the president.

The development marked a significant change for a politician who had played an important role in the government’s first term.

While Akufo-Addo retained some ministers and brought others into his second-term administration, Atta Akyea was not among those returning to the Cabinet.

His record as Works and Housing Minister

Atta Akyea served as Minister for Works and Housing from February 2017 until January 2021.

During his tenure, the ministry was responsible for major areas of national policy, including housing development, public buildings and aspects of Ghana’s infrastructure agenda.

One of the major challenges facing the sector was Ghana’s persistent housing deficit.

Successive governments have struggled to provide affordable housing on the scale required, while several housing projects initiated under different administrations have remained incomplete or faced financial and contractual difficulties.

Atta Akyea’s tenure therefore came during a period when expectations were high for the government to address Ghana’s housing challenges.

The Saglemi housing project

Atta Akyea has also recently spoken about the controversial Saglemi Housing Project, describing the situation surrounding the project as an embarrassment to Ghana.

He questioned why a project involving significant public investment had not delivered the intended benefits to Ghanaians.

The former minister has suggested that he expected the subsequent administration under President John Dramani Mahama to take steps to address the difficulties surrounding Saglemi.

His latest comments on the project form part of a broader debate over abandoned or unfinished government projects and the financial consequences of changing political administrations.

Beyond the personal disagreement

Although Atta Akyea’s comments focus partly on his relationship with Akufo-Addo, the issues he has raised go beyond a personal political disagreement.

They touch on a broader question that has repeatedly emerged in Ghanaian politics: how much room should ministers have to disagree with presidents when they believe a particular decision is wrong?

In political systems where the president appoints and can remove ministers, disagreements between ministers and the executive can have significant consequences for political careers.

A minister may strongly defend a position on principle, but the final authority over Cabinet appointments rests with the president.

Atta Akyea’s experience therefore provides another example of the complex relationship between political loyalty, personal conviction and executive authority.

Akufo-Addo’s legacy under renewed discussion

The former president’s administration continues to face scrutiny even after leaving office in January 2025.

Supporters point to policies and programmes introduced during his eight years in office, while critics continue to raise concerns about economic difficulties, public debt, governance issues and the implementation of some major projects.

As former officials increasingly speak about their experiences, additional information about the internal workings of the administration is entering the public domain.

Atta Akyea’s comments are particularly noteworthy because he was not merely an outsider commenting on the administration. He was part of the Cabinet during its first term and had a longstanding political relationship with Akufo-Addo.

A revealing account from a former minister

For Atta Akyea, the disagreements with Akufo-Addo appear to have been part of the difficult realities of working within a presidential administration.

His decision to speak publicly about those disagreements also comes at a time when the NPP is engaged in discussions about its future direction following its defeat in the 2024 general election.

The party continues to debate the reasons behind its electoral defeat and how it can rebuild its political fortunes ahead of future elections.

The experiences of former ministers and senior party figures could become increasingly important as the NPP evaluates what worked, what went wrong and what lessons can be drawn from its time in government.

For now, Atta Akyea’s account has reopened discussion about his relationship with Nana Akufo-Addo, the decisions that shaped his political career and the internal disagreements that existed within the former administration.

His description of his non-retention after the 2020 election as a misjudgment also provides a candid assessment of a decision that ended his tenure as a Cabinet minister after the NPP secured a second term.