Executive Director of Lands and Mines Watch Ghana, Kwame Owusu Danso, has criticised what he describes as the growing arrogance and inaccessibility of some political appointees after assuming public office.
In a strongly worded opinion piece titled The Sudden Pomposity of Appointees, he accused some government officials of abandoning the very grassroots supporters who helped secure political victory for them.
According to him, many appointees quickly become unreachable once they assume office, despite previously maintaining close relationships with party loyalists and constituents during campaigns.
“Barely have the appointment letters dried before a strange transformation sets in. Phone numbers that were freely shared during campaigns suddenly become ‘private lines,’” he wrote.
He further criticised the culture of bureaucracy and gatekeeping around some officials, arguing that ordinary citizens are often deliberately kept at a distance.
“Visits to the office are met with an army of aides, personal assistants, and protocol officers whose chief duty appears to be keeping ordinary citizens — including the very people who delivered the votes — at arm’s length,” he stated.
The Former running mate to Alan Kyerematen, also argued that some appointees only reconnect with supporters when political survival or personal interest is at stake.
“And yet, curiously, these same appointees rediscover their phone numbers and their humility when there is something to gain,” he wrote.
He warned that the trend risks deepening political disillusionment and weakening public trust in leadership.
“This pattern is corrosive. It breeds cynicism in the electorate, hollows out the social contract, and ensures that public office is seen not as a trust but as a personal estate,” he stressed.
The mining CSO executive concluded with a caution that political power is temporary and should be exercised with humility.
“Public office is a season, not a coronation,” he declared.
