For a year now, Oye Lithur doesn’t respond when I greet – Rachel Appoh, Dep. Gender Minister

• Posted on June 26, 2014
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

A Deputy Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection has finally blown the lid on the frosty relationship between the sector Minister, Nana Oye Lithur, and her two deputies, Rachel Nana Adwoa Appoh and Benita Okity-Duah.

Rumours abound about the seeming terrible working environment at the Gender ministry, with deputy ministers reportedly sharing offices with secretaries at the front desk and chief directors determining when and how deputy Ministers are provided transport to undertake official duties, with apparently no objections from the Minister.

Until her appointment, Nana Oye Lithur was a well known gender advocate who fought for equal opportunities for women and touted office harmony as crucial to success.

But speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem on Wednesday June 25, 2014, a downhearted Rachel Appoh, who is also MP for Gomoa Central and in charge of Gender at the Ministry, said the relationship between the sector Minister and her deputies had been so bad that Nana Oye Lithur had refused to respond to her greetings for over a year.

‘For about one year now madam does not respond to my greetings, since June last year’ she revealed.

‘To be honest with you, weWe don’t have a good relationship. She has even walked me out of her office at least once. I’ve been to the Chief Director several times to ask what I have done so I can go on my knees to beg her but nothing has changed.

‘I even went to Flagstaff House to speak Chief of Staff about the happenings. They called us individually and he spoke to us but still nothing has changed.’

Asked what she does at the ministry, given the lack of direction from Nana Oye Lithur, she stated ‘I create job for myself because the Minister refuses to communicate with me.

‘I’m in charge of Gender, but you will meet a press man and he will ask you ‘what are you doing here, why are you not at the Press conference’ but I didn’t even know about it. It’s been going on for about a year now.

‘They don’t even invite me for anything, me and Benita (Okity-Duah, the other deputy minister at the Ministry). I’ve even asked for the year’s action plan, we are in June but as at now nothing has happened.

‘I have no imprest to work with. Deputy Ministers attend cabinet meetings when the minister is not around but we have never been allowed to go.’

The lack of a proper working relationship has even affected the MP’s relationship with her constituents.

‘My constituents have summoned me for over two months now but I haven’t been able to go because I cannot even go to them to explain,’ she disclosed.

‘It’s not a pleasant experience at all. It’s not easy,’ she said sadly.

However, a senior member of the governing NDC, Alhaji Bature Iddrisu, has challenged the Gomoa Central MP to resign if she believes she is being prevented from discharging her duties as minister.

Also speaking on Dwaso Nsem Alhaji Bature, who is Managing Editor of the Al-Hajj newspaper: said ‘Her conduct is irresponsible. If she can’t take it she should resign. Rachel Appoh is a danger to the Mahama government, she should not stay in government for a day.’

-adomfm