Gradually some Members of Parliament (MPs) are making the episode of Animal Farm a reality in the day-to-day lives of the people. Everyday they bring Ghanaians to the painful realisation that some are more important than others in our society.
Although one of the key drivers of the rule of law is equality before the law, our MPs are placed above the ordinary person. There is no denying the fact that MPs enjoy special privileges in our midst, but by their actions they leave the people wondering whether the legislators are truly representing the people.
We are told that Parliament is the master of its own rules, the MPs like any other citizen should always submit to the laws of the land. Whenever the arrest of an MP becomes a topical issue with the political party to which he belongs making it a political fuss of it, we are quickly told that a legislator cannot be arrested while on parliamentary duties or while he or she is on the way to and from Parliament. There may be good reasons for such a caveat, but it creates the impression that as a country we want to create a class society. Not too long ago, to be precise, after the change of government in 2016, it was alleged that some MPs who were also ministers of state took double salaries but almost seven years on the matter is in limbo.
The Auditor General’s Report is replete with similar reports of some public servants allegedly receiving double salaries and when state institutions appear before Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), these officers are rebuked for their selfish acts. It does not end there but the PAC refers them to the Attorney General for prosecution. We salute the PAC for safeguarding the public purse by holding the government to account for every pesewa.
The question is if the PAC is outraged by the reckless use of the public purse, why has it remained silent over the double salaries saga allegedly committed by some MPs?
Let the PAC act to retrieve such monies from our MPs if it is established to be the truth, and certainly we shall applaud them. It will also be a very loud statement to Ghanaians that nobody is above the law.
Now to the vexed question of whether our MPs are public servants and for which reason they are obliged to be guided by the rules of the public service.
In so far as the emoluments of the MPs are a charge onto the Consolidated Fund, they cannot claim otherwise. The releases from the government facilitates the work of Parliament, including the payment of sitting allowances and ex-gratia even if they want to call it gratuity. When our MPs travel abroad on official duties, our missions there serve them in various spheres. Therefore our MPs are servants of the Republic. And that being the case, can our MPs go on strike indefinitely or stage boycotts because one of their own has been dragged to court?