John Mahama
Former Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama has been criticized for making insults part of his communication skills when faced with criticism from his fellow citizens.
This is not the first time the former president has been accused of this insulting behaviour.
Nana Akomea, Managing Director of the State Transport Corporation (STC) and former Director of Communications for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) urged Mahama, who is taking another run for the presidency as leader of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), to refrain from insulting citizens if he wants to earn their votes.
“So I fully endorse President Mahama’s sentiments. I only asked him to show leadership by reviewing his own entitlements in the light of the burden these present to the tax payer and his plan to scrap the Ex-Gratia.
“Even if President Mahama disagrees with me, I am sad that he chose to lace his disagreement with insults to my person, by implying politics had caused me to lose my “fine mind”.
“The last time other citizens commented on this same sentiments of President Mahama, he met them with similar insults, calling them “Silly”.
“I urge President Mahama, that if he wants to be President of Ghana again, he should refrain from insulting citizens,” Nana Akomea response to the former President.
Nana Akomea challenged Mahama to lead by example and forego his own ex-gratia benefits if he is truly committed to scrapping the entitlements altogether.
“I have just seen a news report titled “Really Sad What Politics can do to a fine mind”.
“In this report, Ex-President Mahama berates me for calling on him to stop taking Ex-Gratia. It is my view that, ex-President Mahama can show that he means business with his pledge to scrap Ex-Gratia enjoyed by Article 71 office holders if he will forego his own Ex-Gratia benefits. I used the term “ex gratia loosely to refer to what is officially titled: Facilities, Privileges and Benefits for Article 71 office holders.
“In his rebuttal, Mahama says what he collects is not Ex-Gratia but a monthly pension. But I take President Mahama’s assertion that what he now takes is strictly, not Ex-Gratia, but a monthly Pension.
“But President Mahama knows he does not just receive only some monthly pension.”
Mahama has since responded, denying that he receives ex-gratia but rather a monthly pension.
However, Nana Akomea pointed out that the former president’s entitlements go beyond just a monthly stipend, including a fully furnished residence or 40 percent of his salary in lieu, a fully furnished office, and four staff paid by the state at the level of Deputy Minister, among others.
Akomea also criticised Mahama for his response to a call for a review of facilities, privileges, and benefits enjoyed by Article 71 office holders whiles he is enjoying same.
Nana Akomea’s comments came on the backdrop of Mr Mahama’s statement at the launch of his presidential campaign towards Election 2024 last month when he said one of the first things he will do as President will be the scrapping of the payment of ex-gratia for members of the Executive under Article 71 of the 1992 Constitution. Article 71 public office holders include members of the Executive, Parliament and the Judiciary.
Mr Mahama said he will earnestly in 2025 initiate the necessary constitutional steps towards its removal for members of the Executive.
For those in the other arms of government, he said the necessary steps will be taken to persuade members to also accept for ex-gratia payment to be scrapped.
His reason is that it is a burden on the public purse and the removal is therefore to ensure the judicious use of public funds.
“The payments of ex gratia to members of the Executive under Article 71 will be scrapped And the necessary constitutional steps to abolish that payment will start in earnest in 2025… persuading the other arms of government other than the Executive to accept the removal of these ex gratia members,” he said.
During an appearance on Peace FM’s ‘Kokrokoo’ programme, Nana Akomea expressed his intention to demonstrate his stance on abolishing ex-gratia when Mahama returns to power.
In response to Akomea’s remarks, Mahama took to Twitter to clarify that he does not accept ex-gratia. He stated that he receives a monthly pension instead, which contradicts Akomea’s claim.
He tweeted: “My friend Nana Akomea. Really sad what politics can do to a fine mind! I don’t take ex-gratia. I receive a monthly pension”.
By Vincent Kubi