The Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim, has directed officials of the Tema West Municipal Assembly to immediately expand the Persons with Disability (PWD) register to ensure that all eligible persons are captured, regardless of political affiliation.
Speaking during a session of the District Accountability Series at the Assembly, the Minister expressed concern about the limited reach of the disability support programme and the apparent exclusion of many deserving beneficiaries.
“Open up registration; disability has no party colour,” he said, cautioning officials against restricting access to support for only a select group of beneficiaries while others remain excluded.
Mr Ibrahim further instructed the Assembly to retain existing beneficiaries while making room for new entrants.
“Don’t remove any old person on the register. Open up the register for new people to be included. Don’t just service the old register,” he stated.
The Local Government Minister gave officials a two-week ultimatum to review and update the register to ensure that all persons with disabilities within the municipality are identified and captured.
“You have two weeks to open up the register. All persons with disability within the Tema West Municipality must be updated; all must be involved,” he directed.
He also called for a comprehensive audit of the register to eliminate fraudulent entries and ensure that resources intended for vulnerable persons reach the right beneficiaries.
“Remove ghost names from the register and invite all persons with disability to come and register,” he added.
Mr Ibrahim expressed disappointment over the amount allocated to persons with disabilities in the municipality, noting that less than GH¢1 million had been disbursed to the group.
He described the situation as unacceptable, given the needs of beneficiaries, and warned against the misuse of funds earmarked for vulnerable groups, stressing the moral responsibility that comes with managing such resources.
The Local Government Minister’s visit formed part of the ongoing District Accountability Series, an initiative aimed at scrutinising the utilisation of decentralised funds by Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).
According to him, the exercise is the first of its kind in the country’s history and is intended to assess whether public funds transferred to local assemblies are being used in accordance with established guidelines and for their intended purposes.
He explained that the Ministry has compiled expenditure records and other documents from various assemblies to determine how allocated funds have been managed over the years.
Preliminary findings from some assemblies, he revealed, have raised concerns about the stewardship of public resources, prompting a nationwide review of expenditure patterns and project implementation.
“The purpose of this exercise is to determine whether the monies have been used judiciously and whether assemblies are delivering value for the resources entrusted to them,” he noted.
Ahmed Ibrahim had earlier visited the Tema Metropolitan Assembly as part of the accountability tour and is expected to continue engagements with other assemblies across the country to promote transparency, strengthen financial management and improve service delivery at the local level.
The District Accountability Series Tour is expected to expose inefficiencies, identify best practices and reinforce government efforts to ensure that decentralised funds directly benefit communities and vulnerable groups, including persons with disabilities.
