Governance expert Richard Fiadomor has noted that President John Dramani Mahama’s immediate dissolution of nine state institution boards may have been prompted by underlying corporate governance issues or internal friction among board members.
The decision to dissolve the boards faced criticism, particularly because several of the affected institutions had recently reported significant profits.
Speaking in an interview on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Mr. Fiadomor suggested that these state-owned enterprises (SOEs) might not actually be generating expected returns.
He explained that while the President reserves the right to appoint or dissolve boards, the decision triggered widespread debate due to the sheer volume of dismissals occurring all at once.
“The reason why the dissolution has become an issue we are discussing is because of the numbers at the same time. It is unprecedented.”
He stated that going by the report from the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), one could easily argue that these SOEs are currently yielding better returns than under the previous administration.
Mr. Fiadomor acknowledged that the boards appear to be performing well, which is not in dispute.
“However, if you examine the issue—especially when the dissolution occurred right after SIGA’s report had been released—two things come to mind. Either these state enterprises that had their boards dissolved were not able to meet key performance indicators even if they might have made profits, or there are some corporate governance issues going on in these institutions having a negative impact on us.”
He told host Kwabena Agyapong on Rainbowradioonline.com that the President’s action was positive and deserved commendation.
Meanwhile, he advised authorities to expedite the reconstitution of the affected boards, warning that management cannot act without board approval.
“As I speak, the Chief Executive Officers of the affected boards cannot implement anything new when there is no board, but can only embark on initiatives already approved by the board.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
