Stick to your mandate for smooth transfer of power!

 It is now public knowledge that former President John Dramani Mahama, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, has won Saturday’s general election.

This means the sitting Pres­ident, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who is ruling on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) is going to hand over power to Mr Mahama on January 7, 2025, a day after his second four-year term had ended.

Since matters of governance strictly depend on legislation, there is what is termed the Pres­idential (Transition) Act, 2012 (Act 845) to guide the transfer of power and for related matters.

Once the transfer of power is going to be an inter-party affair, a joint transition team has to be formed for that purpose.

On Wednesday, an 18-mem­ber joint transitional team was inaugurated to oversee the transfer of political power from President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to President-elect John Dramani Mahama.

The team is jointly chaired by Madam Akosua Frema Os­ei-Opare, the current Chief of Staff and as such a member of the NPP; and Mr Julius Debrah, a former Chief of Staff and ob­viously member of the NDC.

It is instructive to note that the functions of the team include making comprehensive practi­cal arrangements to regulate, in accordance with Act 845, the transfer of political power; and ensuring the provision of daily national security briefings for President-elect Mahama during the period before his assumption of office as President.

Besides, the team is to ensure that the salaries, allowances, fa­cilities, privileges and the retiring benefits or awards as determined (i) by the President under clause (1) of Article 71, and (ii) by Parliament under clause (2) of Article 71 and which are due to the holders of the offices specified under Article 71 of the Constitution are paid or accorded to those persons without undue delay.

Furthermore, depending on the exigencies of the period from now till President Akufo-Addo hands over power to Presi­dent-elect Mahama on January 7, 2025, the team will undertake any other function which will enable it to achieve the object of Act 845.

The Ghanaian Times expects that the joint transitional team will stick to its functions and terms of reference.

Obviously, the team is made up of members from the side of the outgoing government, who are sad about their party’s loss of the Saturday general election, and those from the side of the incoming administration, who are elated about their new status.

The two different feelings and statuses can influence discussions at meetings such that when care is not taken there can be acrimo­ny but this must be avoided.

We know the team will need a lot of information, particularly from the side of the outgoing administration, to deal with.

The information includes facts and figures on ministry budgets, staffing levels, and organisa­tion; the status of projects; and developing situations that would require immediate action by the new administration.

There must be no feet-drag­ging about provision of such information and it should be accurate and sufficient enough for use even if it can incriminate some officials of the outgoing administration.

After all, one of the reasons Ghanaians voted out the NPP is to have accountability from it through the new administration.

Hopefully, the transitional team would deliver on its man­date to add some more beauty to the peaceful election that has re­sulted in the inter-party transfer of presidential power expected to take place on January 7.