The Executive Director of Global InfoAnalytics, Mussa Dankwah, has urged government ministers to concentrate on delivering results in their respective portfolios rather than becoming distracted by political ambitions.
His comments come amid a public dispute between the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) over claims regarding the release of more than GH¢1.6 billion for agricultural programmes this year, with both ministries presenting conflicting accounts of budget allocation.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Friday, June 5, 2026, Mr. Dankwah said ministers should prioritize performance, noting that the success of individual ministers is closely tied to the overall performance of the government.
“You know that your success is hinged on the performance of your government. And if that is the case, then I expect every minister to focus on performance,” he said.
“If you feel there are maybe challenges to your ministry, I think that’s for me an issue that I should be talking about. They can discuss it among themselves as a cabinet and see how best to resolve those issues.”
Mr. Dankwah acknowledged that political ambitions among government officials are inevitable but cautioned against allowing such aspirations to overshadow governance.
“Yes, ambitions are there. And somebody may think that somebody may try to scupper his ambition and they have the right to raise red flags,” he said.
His remarks come as speculation continues over potential contenders for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearership race ahead of the next electoral cycle.
Addressing perceptions about the standing of potential aspirants, Mr. Dankwah said public opinion polls and surveys of party delegates often produce different outcomes.
He noted that while Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson performs strongly among the public, he does not currently lead among NDC delegates, who will ultimately decide the party’s flagbearer.
“Now, if you look at the public, the general public, as to who they prefer to lead NDC, it is Ato Forson on 32 percent, Asiedu Nketiah on 25 percent, Haruna Iddrisu on 23 percent, Prof Jane Naana on 14 percent, and others on 5 percent,” he said.
“The public doesn’t vote to elect NDC flag bearers. When it comes to the delegates, Ato Forson is not leading. The man who leads is General Mosquito, 29 percent. Ato Forson is 19 percent. Haruna is 11 percent.”
Mr. Dankwah also advised that any concerns arising from political activities or succession discussions within government should be managed through clear internal guidelines.
“What we are seeing between the agriculture ministry and finance ministry is bureaucratic issues of processes that can be dealt with within that context,” he said.
He added that while there is nothing wrong with prospective candidates conducting exploratory studies to assess their political viability, such activities should not interfere with the responsibilities of public office.
“I think there should be some guidelines,” he said. “There’s nothing wrong with people doing or starting exploratory studies or research to find out their chances. That is not campaigning. That’s about fact-finding and seeing whether you are viable or not.”
