Vice Presidents In Ghana Are Only Powerful After The Death Of The President – Kuffuor’s Chief Of Staff Mpiani
Former Chief of Staff under the John Agyekum Kuffuor administration, Mr Kwadwo Okyere Mpiani has said Vice Presidents in Ghana are powerless.
Speaking to Citi TV he said although the role of Vice Presidents is stated clearly in the constitution, they remain powerless until the President assign them a role to do.
He explained that the Vice President’s role is to act in the stead of the president therefore your only hope is that the President will die for you to get some real powers.
“The vice president’s role is stated clearly in the constitution. In practice you have to follow that but the president may add other duties.”
Was Kwadwo Mpiani not more powerful than Aliu Mahama? He was asked but he answered “Kwadwo Mpiani couldn’t be more powerful than Aliu Mahama. Except that really, if you look in the constitution, what is the function of a vice president?
“Acting in the stead of the president so, maybe, your hope is for the president to die for you to take over then you have real power otherwise you don’t really have power.
“Any power you have depends on what the president wants you to do but unfortunately for our vice presidents, some of the powers given to them in the constitution, Jerry Rawlings took them away like being the Chairman of the Police Council or being the Chairman of Defense Council because of his problems with the late Kow Nkensen Arkaah who was the Vice President, he asked parliament to take all of it away?”