For the avoidance of doubt, I have no personal reasons to antagonize Nana Oye Lithur, Minister of Gender and Social Protection, whom I have never met, but the position she currently occupies is one of the sensitive Ministries of the governance set-up and so her decisions affect us all.
On the other hand, I am happy that she is among the few ministers in the administration of President John Dramani Mahama, who is occupying a ministry that has direct correlation with what she had done and stood for all her working life.
I will state here and now that she is among the few women whose achievements Ghanaian women should be proud of.
When under President John Agyekum Kufuor, she joined few Ghanaians who had the courage to stand up to the Gambian President and demand justice for 44 Ghanaians who were murdered in 2005 for allegedly planning to overthrow the government of President Yahya Jammeh.
But I insist that her present Ministerial appointment is not an amour against rigorous public accountability. It is also not an excuse to want to frighten off her deputies and other employees at the Ministry from expressing their legitimate views on the affairs of the ministry.
Since she insists on her sterling achievements in public office, I see two distinct Nana Oye Lithurs. The first is someone who served creditably as the Chief Executive Director of the Human Rights Advocacy Centre. For years she worked as the Regional Coordinator (Africa Office) for the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI).
I am referring to the one who negotiated for the payment of compensation for the families, who lost their loved ones in those senseless killings in Gambia. I am talking here of the one who is referred severally as a human right advocate.
The second Nana Oye Lithur is something of a pitiable tragic reversal. The current one is presiding over the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection under President John Dramani Mahama and that Ministry has been in the news for all the wrong reasons because of the autocratic nature of Oye Lithur.
It was Abraham Lincoln, who said that nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power. Power has indeed lifted the veil on Oye’s face and we now know her for who she really is, a baby autocrat.
Since Nana Oye assumed office, her ministry has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, because of the absurd hostile relationship she has with her two deputies.
These naked hatred and unbridled rivalry is what led to the former Deputy Minister of Communication, Victoria Hammah, losing her job, she was caught on tape making wild and unsubstantiated claims.
She was apparently advising her colleague, Rachel Florence Appoh, a deputy Minister of Gender and social Protection, to tread cautiously when dealing with Nana Oye Lithur, her boss. Because as she Vicky put it, Oye Lithur is above her (Appoh’s) class, despite thinking she (Appoh) has godfathers.
Nana Oye is reported to have threatened to cause the arrest of her deputy, Ms Rachel Florence Appoh, and Director of Social Welfare, Christian Babooroh. The two officials incurred the wrath of Nana Oye Lithur, because the deputy minister had authorized Mr. Babooroh to release an 18-month-old baby girl to good Samaritans Jennifer and Shirley –who had saved the child from her depressed mother.
This was after the Minister had called the two good Samaritans, who had come to the rescue of the baby from an unstable mother, receiving treatment at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, whores and walked them out of her office.
Nana Oye Lithur’s latest standup comedy, is the treatment she meted out to Benita Okity-Dua, who is also a deputy minister at her ministry. She publicly ridiculed her even though she was fully aware the young lady was sick. It was a show of power and a further demonstration of who has the ears of the President.
One last point on politics and leadership to the President, John Dramani Mahama: Mr. Mahama needs to be more vigilant in his political calculations about two trends. First, he has in his cabinet Ministers and high officials who display traits of a fledgling tyranny.
These baby autocrats are intolerant of criticisms, are building personality cults and generally conducting the affairs of their ministries like medieval lords. These conducts run counter to the President’s more genteel mien and generally commendable tolerance level.
My final advice: the President must assert his authority and call the woman to order, not to be branded political, the woman said at her vetting that she is not a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), so what does she care whether the party loses or not. Unfortunately, her two deputies, all represent a constituency.
Family and friends indeed.