Presidency Bans Public Officials from Accepting Private Excellence Awards | Discuss Ghana

The Presidency has issued a strict, immediate directive banning all Ministers of State, Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of State Institutions, and political appointees from participating in or accepting accolades from unapproved private award schemes.

In a formal state circular dated June 8, 2026 (Ref. No. DPS 182/2/835) signed by the Secretary to the President, Dr. Callistus Mahama, the government expressed serious concern over the surging proliferation of commercial, self-appointed rating bodies. The executive order notes that these unverified events, which routinely crown officials as "best-performing" or "most outstanding," heavily undermine the integrity of public service, muddy objective performance metrics, and subject the state to unnecessary public embarrassment and criticism.

Dismantling Commercial "Best Performing" Accolades

The sweeping directive establishes a zero-tolerance policy against external validation schemes that lack transparent, verifiable, or publicly scrutinized methodologies:

The Participation Ban: All public office holders are explicitly ordered to refrain from participating in, sponsoring, endorsing, attending, or accepting awards from external organizations unless they receive express authorization from the Office of the President.

The True Performance Metric: The circular outlines that real administrative success will be measured strictly by how effectively officials fulfill the concrete policy objectives and sector-specific targets set out in the 2024 National Democratic Congress (NDC) Manifesto and current government agendas.

Upcoming Cabinet Review: The Presidency announced that it will soon launch an official internal review of all ministers and state CEOs. The findings of this data-backed review will serve as the sole baseline for cabinet reshuffles, reassignments, or retentions in office.

PRESIDENTIAL DISCIPLINARY & PERFORMANCE MATRIX:
┌────────────────────────────────────────┐      ┌────────────────────────────────────────┐
│         THE PROHIBITED EXTERNALS       │      │         THE AUTHORIZED STANDARD        │
├────────────────────────────────────────┤      ├────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • Private Commercial Award Schemes     │  ──  │ • Delivery of 2024 NDC Manifesto Pledges│
│ • Self-Appointed Rating Bureau Panels  │  ──  │ • Prudent Management of Public Funds   │
│ • Unauthorized Gala Honors & Placards  │      │ • Impending Official Presidency Review  │
└────────────────────────────────────────┘      └────────────────────────────────────────┘