President John Dramani Mahama has directed all ministers of state, chief executive officers of state institutions, and other political appointees to refrain from participating in, sponsoring, endorsing, attending, or accepting awards from organisations unless expressly authorised by the Office of the President.
According to the Presidency, it has been noted with concern that there was an increasing trend of ministers of state, chief executive officers of state institutions, and other public officials participating in and accepting awards from various private organisations purporting to recognise them as the “best-performing”, “most outstanding”, or “most influential” public office holders.
In many instances, the organisations conferring such awards are largely unknown to the public, their credentials are unclear, and no transparent, objective, or verifiable criteria exist for assessing the performance of public officials, the presidency indicated.
Last Saturday [June 6, 2026], one similar award dubbed “Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours,” a 6th Edition, was organised in Accra.
It was organised by Big Events Ghana, whose founder is Prince Emmanuel Markey.
It is an award scheme designed to recognise public officials, ministers, and institutional leaders for their purported contributions to governance and national development.
The Key Performance Index (KPI) for selecting award winners for this one is not publicly known, nor is the panel or team that selects award winners, also publicly known.
Controversy
The most recent 6th edition of the awards, after the Saturday event at the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel in Accra, has drawn public criticism, with backlash from some in relation to the credibility of self-awarded or privately organised honours for appointees during times of community hardship and infrastructure challenges.
Read also: The real honour is service, not paid recognition – Prof. Michael Kpessa-Whyte, Director-General of SIGA writes
The key award winners for 2026 included: Overall Best Performing Minister: Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson (Minister of Finance and acting Minister of Defence), Best Regional Minister (Greater Accra): Linda Ocloo, Best Male Performing Minister: Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah (Minister of Lands and Natural Resources), Best Female Performing Minister: Rita Akosua Adjei Awatey (Eastern Regional Minister), Best Deputy Minister: Dorcas Affo Toffey (Deputy Minister of Transport.
Directive from the presidency
It is in response to this and concerns over the credibility of the awarding organisation that the Office of the President issued the directive dated June 8, 2026, banning all Ministers of State and CEOs from accepting privately organised awards without explicit presidential authorisation.
In a letter from the Office of the President dated June 8, 2026, signed and issued by the Secretary to the President, Dr Callistus Mahama, and copied to all ministers of state and CEOs of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), it was explained that “the proliferation of such awards has the potential to undermine the integrity of public service, create misconceptions regarding government performance assessment, and expose the Government to unnecessary public criticism and embarrassment.”