Accra, Sept. 1, GNA-Mr. Yakubu Alhassan Abukari, Municipal Coordinating Director of the Bawku Municipal Assembly on Tuesday called on government to curtail the powers of political leadership in the local governance system to enable civil servants perform better. He thus suggested, as matter of urgency, the review of the Local Government Act, (Act 463) that invested 'too much power' in political authorities in the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies, to the detriment of technocrats.

"My Lord civil servants are suffering too much at the hands of chief executives at the district level..Something should be done to dilute their powers", said Abukari who was testifying before the Ghana@50 Commission of Inquiry in Accra.

He said the chief executives rendered the work of civil servants very tedious and counterproductive because "they think they have all the power and sometimes fail to consult us in decision-making in spite of our vast experience in the local governance setup". Mr. Abukari said that the injection of partisan politics in the civil service had not only rendered the work of technocrats at the district level extremely difficult but also created a rift between chief executives and civil servants.

"My lord, if you dare question their actions, you either have yourself transferred or ignored totally..And this is does not augur well for governance at this level. We must cooperate to develop our districts".

During cross-examination, Abukari told the Commission that the Municipal Assembly spent GHC6, 700 out of the GHC10, 000 that the Ghana@50 Secretariat allocated to the assembly for the Jubilee celebration on protocol.

He said the late arrival of the anniversary souvenirs at the assembly, coupled with the protracted conflict in the areas and the availability of alternatives on the local market resulted in low patronage of the items hence most of the paraphernalia were still in stock.

Mr. Abuakari used the platform to appeal for peace in the Bawku municipality.

Massemba Akurugu, Kassena-Nankana East Municipal Coordinating Director, who was blunt when asked by the Commission to suggest ways of improving local governance said "My Lord Civil Servants are facing bullets from DCE's.In short my Lord, Civil servants are cowards". "My Lord the way they instruct us around like we have no aim is serious.It is not good the way we are always saying "Yes Sir Master" to everything they say whether good or bad".

Massemba Akurugu also suggested a critical review the local government law which ascribed 'too much power' to the chief executives, saying "DCE's should make us free; we should cooperate for the good of the constituents in the district.

He said it was because of the unilateral stand of some chief executives that they had found themselves at the Ghana@50 Commission explaining what should have been done right.

According to him, the work of the Commission was a wake-up call to all civil servants to scrutinise the actions of political leaders for the sake of accountability.

Massemba Akurugu who accounted for the GHC10, 000 released by the Secretariat however said there was an excess deduction of GHC42, 721.21 from the assembly's Common Fund in respect of souvenirs. He said though the assembly had not formally complained to the Common Fund Administrator, the deduction was on the high side, saying: 'My Lord, knowing very well how Ghanaians are capable of making mistakes, I would conclude the deduction was a mistake when we realized it was not for the items received '..

Coordinating Directors of East Gonja, Bolgatanga Municipal, Garu Tempane, Bongo, Saboba, Talensi-Nandam, Bawku West and Bulsa District Assemblies also appeared before the Commission. They accounted for the GH¢10,000 provided by the Ghana@50 Secretariat for the celebrations.

However, most of them could not account for proceeds of the souvenirs supplied to them.

Some of them either blamed former Chief Executives for dominating the process or officials of the assemblies for not keeping proper account of receipts. 01 Sept 09