Former President Jerry John Rawlings has demanded an immediate reshuffling of President Mahama’s ministerial appointees, suggesting that a large number of them are incompetent.

According to the former president, people have “reached the saturation point” and felt it is important that Mahama reshuffled his ministers.

Mr Rawlings who was speaking in an exclusive interview with Joy News' Elton John Brobbey on Thursday also denied rumours circulating within government and the party that he is holding on to the list of those likely to be affected by the reshuffle.

“Yes I am not unaware of the occasional misuse of my name by elements in the party and government to cover up their own weaknesses. No such list has come to my office.

“And let me assure you, if such lists were to come to my office it would take no longer than thirty minutes on my table because all I would have to do is tick, cancel out or put a question mark to any such suggested names. And send it right back to where it would have come from.”

In the view of Mr Rawlings, “These changes I believe should have taken place towards the end of last year when Ghanaians had reached their saturation point with what they perceived as the incompetence or the non-performance of some of the appointees, but it didn’t happen. There is a bit of anxiety, some sense of expectation that is where my name becomes a convenient tool to be misused.”

He stressed: “But make no mistake, some of us who are perceived to be part and parcel of the changes or these developments, I hear it also on the air like most of you. I find it extremely mischievous that some of the leaders in the party tend to create this false impression that Rawlings knows and approves of everything going on in government.

“This is not true. The elected President is the coach as he said and that is where our attention should be directed, and not at me.”

When asked if he was convinced some of the appointees were incompetent, he replied:

“Of course, a sizeable percentage of them, I don’t think were good enough and they demonstrated it with their time in office.  I don’t think this is a matter of opinion really, I think we can all see the result of their work. If they have performed better, things would have been different.”

The former president disagreed that the young appointees should be given time to find their footing, saying the NDC has “personalities with lots of experience, this is not the time to be learning in government, no, no, no. We have people with lots of experience, lots of integrity, they could have helped, could provide wise counsel.”