No individual can challenge the President's power to dismiss Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives, Mr. Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development has emphasised. He pointed out that the President was mandated by law to revoke the appointment of public officials at any given time without consulting anyone or assigning reasons. Article 243 (1) of the Constitution states that "There shall be a District Chief Executive for every district who shall be appointed by the President with prior approval of not less than two-thirds majority of members of the assembly present and voting at the meeting. Section 3 (b) of Article 243 also states that the office of District Chief Executive shall become vacant if he is removed from office by the President. Mr. Ankrah said it was therefore bogus, boisterous and not plausible for anyone to challenge the prerogative of the President to dismiss DCEs. He said this when the Times contacted him to react to the paper's front page story on Monday, attributed to a former Municipal Chief Executive for Bolgatanga, Mr. Rockson Ayine Bukari, in which he challenged the powers of the President to dismiss DCEs. Mr. Bukari who was relieved of his post after President Kufuor had won a second term of office in 2004, told an FM station in Bolgatanga that "the President must not remove DCEs without the approval of the assemblies". He argued that the power to appoint a Chief Executive rested in the dual authority of the assembly and the President, and that "In the event that the President is dissatisfied with a DCE's performance, the process must be followed with the President informing the assembly of the reasons for seeking the removal of the chief executive, and for the assembly to decide." But Mr. Ankrah described the assertions of Mr. Bukari as porous and without merit. He said the President nominates the DCEs for confirmation by two thirds of the members of a district assembly, and noted that when it comes to revoking the appointment, the President was not obliged to inform the assembly or give reasons. "The law is clear that the President nominates and the assembly confirms the appointment of DCEs. But when it comes to the dismissal of DCEs, the assembly has no power to decide on their fate," he said. Mr. Ankrah stated that it was the prerogative of the President to revoke the appointment of DCEs and so the suggestion for the assembly's approval was baseless and unlawful. Source: Ghanaian Times