The Presidential Spokesperson, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, has held brief for the Minister-designate for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, in respect of her late arrival at the swearing-in ceremony.
The Gender Minister-designate who was expected to be sworn-in with five others approved by Parliament on Thursday, January 23, 2025, arrived late to the event held on Friday, January 24.
Explaining the circumstances leading to this occurrence, Mr Kwakye Ofosu said planners of the event sent the notice impromptu, thus the minister-designate gave an indication of her difficulty in arriving on time due to a family emergency that required her presence outside Accra.
“In some ways, we were even unfair to her by putting her in that situation. It was to her credit that she showed up anyway. I must plead that it was not the doing of the Minister. She made an effort…I know her very well, and I can vouch for her. She is a very serious person. It is not that she was late. She had communicated her situation honestly, and we respect public sentiments on this matter.”
“Naa Momo truthfully, indicated that a family emergency had taken her out of Accra, and therefore, it was going to be very close. We encouraged her to come nonetheless and that if she got there in time, she would be added, and if for some reason she could not make it, we would do it another time,” he explained on KeyPoints on TV3, January 25.
The President’s Spokesperson clarified further that the organisers anticipated the possibility of her absence, thus took out her name from those who were sworn-in.
“So, if you observe carefully, President Mahama was very specific in mentioning the names and giving them KPIs [Key Performance Indicators]. We did two alternative speeches—one that anticipated her presence and one that anticipated her absence. So immediately, we had to switch because we had prepared for that scenario,” he stated.
Naa Momo Lartey was scheduled to have been sworn-in together with Ahmed Ibrahim, Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Abla Dzifa Gomashie, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Emelia Arthur, Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture and George Opare-Addo, Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment
