News

Prez Mills slashes Ex-gratia awards as MPs threaten court action
Abdul Salam Sule, Ghanadot

Accra, Feb 12, Ghanadot- The President, Prof John Evans Atta Mills has finally broken his silence on the controversial ex-gratia awards which was recommended by the Chinery-Hesse Committee.

The President has directed that instead of the payment of ex-gratia of five months salary to Members of Parliament (MP) for each full year of service in addition to a resettlement grant equivalent to two months for every completed year of service as was recommended by the Chinery-Hesse committee, they should be paid, on account, ex-gratia equivalent to four months salary for each full year of service.

The president has also decided to set up, in consultation with the Council of State when it is established, a Committee on Emoluments as stipulated under Article 71 of the 1992 Constitution to revisit the issue of emoluments to specialized office holders.

A new package will thus be adopted after the Committee on Emoluments, which will have a month to complete its work, submits a report to the President for review.

This directive was issued in a press statement signed by Presidential spokesperson, Mr. Mahama Ayariga.

According to the statement, recommendations with respect of all others covered by the Chinery-Hesse report will be determined after the submission of the report of the new committee.

The statement further outlined the circumstances that led to the president's decision noting that the president was alerted of some communication from the Ministry of Finance to the Controller and Accountant-General to effect the payment of ex-gratia awards to the ex-President, Ex-Vice President and Ex-Ministers and Members of Parliament as per the recommendations of the Chinery-Hesse Committee on emoluments.

The statement pointed out that the president, following investigations, established that there was no basis for proceeding with the ex-gratia payments.

Meanwhile, the former Majority Leader in Parliament, Abraham Osei Aidoo, has threatened going to court if President Mills insists on cutting the emoluments of ex-government functionaries.

The threat by the former MP comes days after the President ordered a freeze of all ex-gratia payments set to be paid by the Controller and Accountant General.

The move by the president is believed to have been triggered by the enormous public outcry that greeted reports about the luxurious ex-gratia packages endorsed by Parliament for former government officials.

A former MP for Zimbila on People's National Cnvention (PNC) ticket, Alhaji Edebigri called on his fellow colleagues to reject the four month pay because he believed a president can not just take a decision because of the few people who went on the streets to demonstration. He said, government could not decide to just slash their emolument because it had been included in the constitution of Ghana and if president Mills maintained his position, then they would be forced to go to court.

Explaining why people always complain when certain amounts of money was given to MPs and officials in elective positions, he said Ghanaians have been made to believe that when one was in an elective office, "you do not deserve to be treated with respect, that is why people always complain whenever these things happen."

Ghanadot