Former Tamale Central Constituency Member of Parliament Inusah Fuseini has refuted claims by the Information Minister that the 7th Parliament approved for the payment of spouses of the President and his Vice President.
The Information Minister is reported to have said that “a committee [on emoluments] only recommended that an arrangement for the spouses be made formal and that received approval from Parliament”.
He said the allowance payments were instituted under the Kufuor administration but were only being formalized upon the recommendation of the emoluments committee.
But reacting to this, Inusah Fuseini who was part of the seventh parliament has indicated that the claims by the Information Minister were unfounded and that he does not recall that payment of the spouses of the President and his Vice were part of the recommendations brought to Parliament.
He said “I’m really shocked that Kojo Oppong Nkrumah is saying that the 7th Parliament approved the payment of salaries and equating the office of wives of the President and the Vice-president to Article 71 officeholders. I’m not aware and cannot recollect during the discussions for approval of salaries of Article 71 officeholders that the names of the First and Second Ladies ever featured. I cannot recollect. I’m not aware that the committee made such recommendations. This would have raised legal and constitutional issues which would have attracted my attention. I can say without any fear or doubt that this never came to parliament”.
To Inusah Fuseini, it is not possible to equate the offices of spouses of the President and Vice to the offices of cabinet ministers.
“It beats my imagination. Cabinet ministers exist by the constitution to advise the President. Are they telling us that their wives are now their advisors?” He questioned.
Source: MyNewsGh.com
