By:Kenneth Appiah Bani.
Dennis Miracles Aboagye, a former Presidential Staffer and Local Government Coordinator, has criticized Ghana’s asset declaration system as ineffective and outdated, calling for its complete reform or abolition.
Speaking on Newsfile on JoyNews on Saturday, May 10, Mr. Aboagye, who currently serves as spokesperson for Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s presidential campaign, stated that the current framework does little to ensure real accountability among public officials.
“My view on asset declaration has always been that we should stop wasting our time discussing it,” he said. “It should either be scrapped entirely or completely reformed, because in its current state, it serves no meaningful purpose.”
Aboagye disclosed that although he has declared his assets twice, the process remains shrouded in secrecy and lacks enforcement.
“I’ve declared my assets twice and so what? Nobody knows what I submitted,” he said. “The real question is: what are we trying to achieve with asset declarations?”
He downplayed recent praise for President John Dramani Mahama for publishing his asset declaration, claiming it’s not a novel act.
“What President Mahama has done isn’t new,” he said. “Former President Akufo Addo enforced the asset declaration requirement as well he just didn’t publicize it.”
Aboagye recalled coordinating the asset declarations of all Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) during the first term of former President Akufo-Addo, emphasizing the behind scenes efforts to ensure compliance.
“I personally engaged all 261 MMDCEs not just to confirm submission, but to collect proof of declaration,” he explained. “The Auditor General would issue scanned receipts, which I forwarded to the President’s legal advisor. It was a Cabinet level directive, and Akufo-Addo took it seriously.”
Despite this, Aboagye described the asset declaration process as deeply flawed. He criticized the declaration forms as overly complicated, outdated, and ill-suited to Ghana’s governance context.
“The first time I picked up the form, it sat on my desk for three weeks,” he noted. “You either end up under-declaring or over-declaring. In Ghana, valuing your assets alone is a challenge. The form itself is massive you have to fold it multiple times before opening it.”
He called for a streamlined system that is both practical and transparent.
Aboagye also questioned the secrecy surrounding the process, noting that submitted forms often end up unread and unverified.
“You fill the form, seal it in an envelope, give it to someone who doesn’t open it, and it ends up in a box that’s never touched,” he lamented. “Unless there’s a legal crisis, it’s all just a formality.”
He further pointed out the absence of a mechanism to update asset records.
“If I declare my assets in January 2025 and sell one of them in September, how do I update that? Who even receives that update?” he asked.
Mr. Aboagye concluded by urging policymakers to prioritize reforms that will make asset declarations a truly effective tool for transparency, rather than a symbolic bureaucratic ritual.
