Ghana transport minister resigns over bus paint bungle
Accra (AFP) - Ghana's transport
minister resigned Wednesday after a controversy erupted following reports she
spent about one million dollars to repaint over 100 buses with portraits of the
country's recent leaders.
Dzifa Attivor had commissioned a private firm to respray 116
imported passenger busses with the faces of the West African country's past
leaders and current president John Mahama.
But the seemingly innocuous branding exercise became a
rallying point for the opposition party and anti-corruption campaigners, who
used the issue to criticise the ruling party's economic management of the
country.
Attivor's resignation is the first in many years for Ghana
and comes after citizens filed a court action against the government demanding
details of the bus contract.
The contract "did not ensure value for money,"
said Ghana's government after reviewing the bus painting deal and called for a
reimbursement of some of the money.
Ghana's economic growth has stalled in the face of tanking
commodity prices, with the ruling party coming under fire for wasteful spending
in the run up to presidential and parliamentary elections next year.
Earlier this week, President Mahama banned first class
travel for public officials, warning them to avoid "unwarranted"
trips.
The country was forced to look to the IMF for emergency
loans to help bolster its ailing economy, struggling to change its fortunes
amid a power crisis.
As part of the agreement with the IMF, Ghana's authorities
pledged to rein in spending.
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