Tarkwa-Nsuaem Member of Parliament (MP), George Mireku Duker has vented his spleen over opposition against Parliamentary approval of the payment of salaries to First and Second Ladies.
Parliament has officially approved that President and Vice President’s wives will now receive salaries.
This was confirmed by the Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah.
“The truth of the matter is that all surviving spouses of Heads of State, current and former, have always received salaries. Lordina Mahama, Naadu Mills, Matilda Amissah-Arthur, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, Faustina Acheampong, Fulera Liman etc have all been receiving salaries since President Kufuor's time.
“What has happened now is that the arrangement has been made formal but that was done legally based on the recommendation by the Emoluments Committee,” the Minister stated.
Law Suit
But NDC MP for Ningo Prampram, Sam George has threatened a law suit against the approval.
"I am a Member of Parliament, I personally do not subscribe to that, whether it is an NDC President or an NPP President, your wife is not a Public Officer, you wife is your wife. Are we also going to say that the Spouse of the Chief Justice , the spouse of the Speaker must also be paid? Where do we draw the line. Already they get allowances, they get protection from the state at the expense of the taxpayer and I don't have a problem with that," he said in an interview on Neat FM.
NPP Bono Regional Chairman, Kwame Baffoe a.k.a Abronye DC has also sued the Attorney General seeking the Supreme Court to declare that, "the approval by Parliament to pay salaries to the First and Second Ladies is inconsistent with ARTICLE 71 CLAUSES 1 AND 2 of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana and consequently be declared null, void and unenforceable’’.
In a writ sighted by Peacefmonline.com, Abronye DC also asked the court to order that, “per Articles 108 and 178 of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana; parliament cannot, on its own accord, initiate or approve payment of any such emoluments; which would necessarily be paid from public funds; without a bill to that effect emanating from and introduced by the Government and dully passed into law’’.
Mireku Duker's Submissions
Touching on the issue during Peace FM's morning show 'Kokrokoo', Mireku Duker wondered why people would go against the official approval for the First and Second Ladies to receive salaries.
According to him, the action by Parliament is justifiable looking at the services that the President and Vice President's spouses render to the nation.
Particularly alluding to some contributions by Mrs. Rebecca Akufo-Addo, wife of His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to the wellbeing of humanity, particularly women and children, Mireku Duker called on the nation to pamper the First and Second Ladies instead of objecting to their salaries.
"Go everywhere, they pamper First Ladies," he asserted.
He also stressed; ''The contribution of even Mrs. Rebecca to this nation is 200 times more than what we're perceiving to be an allowance to her...Let them calculate her contributions, just her hospital project alone - 'baby-to-mother project'. They should take it and calculate the cost. It's more [more]...The difference is wide''.
To him, the opponents must ''bow our heads in shame''.
Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana
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Pakow, Cape Coast: I laughed reading your comment. 31st December Women's movement was a political organisation intended for the benefit of Women supporting NDC at the time and Equipping Hospitals and Helping Mother and Child are ARTEFACTS or developmental projects that is supposed to be delivered by the government of the day and not the wife of a politician. That is why the government is borrowing at an alarming pace so that we can have developmental projects. If the wife of a public officer or president or vice president decides to do 31st December Women's Movement or Hospitals and Helping Mother and Child then it is a choice they make because the government of the day should have that covered. I am not poor personally haha but I am sensible enough to know that Ghana is a poor country with so many people who struggle to make ends-meet every single day and the last thing a sensible government and parliament want to do is to use public money or resources to pay wives of Presidents and ex Presidents when these same people retire on their salaries and can take care of their wives. It is not a matter of whether one hates it or likes it but it is a matter of whether the government have their PRIORITIES right and can tell the difference between RIGHT and WRONG.
Atta Kwesi and Ghana are getting it all wrong. Though we did not voted for First and Second Ladies but we call them "Her Excellency " why? Because they have a responsibilities they play for Ghana and that requires these allowances and its just common sense. We might hate it or like it, we are all not the same because responsibilities are not same. Take Agyeman Rawlings (31st December Women) and Rebecca Akofu-Addo (Equipping Hospitals and Helping Mother And Child) for example. These are National projects and they must get a little allowances to aid them do more simple. Poverty makes man talk without thinking. When they give we take, but we don't want to give.
The fact that it was during Kuffour's time that government started paying salaries to wives of Presidents and Ex Presidents does not make it the right or sensible thing to do. In a country where financial resources are scarce and government is on a borrowing spree, do you seriously think the sensible thing to do is to use borrowed money to pay wives of Presidents and Vice Presidents? Will the wives of teachers, doctors, nurses, drivers etc also get salaries because they help their husband's do effective work? This is an excellent example of MISPLACED PRIORITY. Indeed, parliament and government is INSENSITIVE and behaves unwisely.
All over the world first ladies are pampered, good statement. Where in the world are first ladies receive salaries? Are the NPP leaders good thinkers and sympathetic to the nation? A President and Vice President would retire on their salaries, cant they take care of their wives but wish the state do that with her scarce resources. Would the poor teacher's wife be paid because the woman helps her husband to do effective teaching. This government is insensitive and behaves unwisely.