Senior Minister-designate Yaw Osafo Marfo has age will not be a drawback in the discharge of his duties if he is given the nod by the Appointments Committee of parliament to become Senior Minister.
The 74-year-old told the Appointments Committee on Friday January 20: “I’m lucky in a way. I enjoy very good health as a person and people wonder the source of my health and energy and I think it’s because of the food, that is the type of food I eat – but, well, I can’t tell you.”
Mr Marfo will be 78 years when President Nana Akufo-Addo completes his first term in 2021.
Once his nomination is approved, Mr Marfo said his role would be to “coordinate” the roles of the various economic ministries in the new government.
The former Finance Minister told the committee: “The president told me specifically that we (NPP) have had a Senior Minister before in the person of J.H. Mensah, whom I worked with because at the time I was the Minister of Finance and he coordinated the economic sector ministries.
“… All the productive sectors are referred to as economic sector and they will be a major bloc as a subcommittee of parliament and they coordinate the activities of the economic sectors of his cabinet, as it may be, and he wanted me to bring my experience as a [former] Minister of Finance, as somebody who has done a similar job in Uganda, as somebody who has done a similar job in Liberia, to bear [on his government] … so, I’m playing a coordinated role for the economic sector as it were.
“The economic sector relates to the other ministries, so, naturally my experience will be brought to bear on my colleagues to make sure that we resuscitate the economy in a very homogenised manner so that there will be harmony,” Mr Marfo said, adding: “From our manifesto, one of the major priorities of the president is to transform the economy because as you are aware, the economy is in some difficulty, we are in an IMF programme and we hope to come out with flying colours.”
