No worry to pay ‘juicy’ salaries to appointees - Dr Oduro Osae

A Local Governance Expert Dr Eric Oduro Osae has stated that it is not out of place for the country to pay ‘mouth watering’ salaries to ministers and other government appointees if they are able to perform to the satisfaction of tax payers by changing the fortunes of the country.

Government appointees have in the past been criticised for looting from State coffers to enrich themselves by putting up mansions, purchasing of properties at the expensive of taxpayers.

But speaking with Lantam Papanko on Ultimate Breakfast Show, the governance expert suggested that systems can be put in place to check appointees from ‘squandering’ State monies.

He said wastage can occur if the State fails to monitor the performances of these appointees.

‘Its not out of place if we are getting value for money. It becomes a problem if we spend money on them and they don’t deliver, if we have three or four deputy ministers assigned to a ministry and at the end of the day if we are not getting value for money, then I have a challenge. We can put in place monitoring mechanisms to ensure that we get value for monies spent on our ministers and appointees manning various offices,’ he stated.

Commenting on public outcry on perceived bloated ministers appointed by the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, he blamed the Constitution for giving the President too much power.

According to him, a President can hide under Article 79 (1) of the Constitution by appointing more than three deputies if a ministry’s portfolio is huge for the minister to handle citing the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology.

He suggested that there should be a cup on the number of ministers appointed by a government by way of amending the Constitution.