President inaugurates c’ttee on emoluments of Article 71 office holders

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has inaugurated a five-member Emoluments Committee to make recommendations on the salaries and allowances payable and the facilities and privileges available to Article 71 office holders.

The recommendations will be made to the Presidency and Parliament for consideration.

The committee, chaired by Prof. Yaa Ntiamoa-Baidu, a former Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana and Chairperson of the Board of the Millennium Development Authority, is to make recommendations in respect of emoluments and other privileges for Article 71 office holders, as specified under the Constitution, and examine any other relevant matters which the committee will deem appropriate to its work.

Other members of the committee are Mr Abraham Osei Aidoo, a former Majority Leader and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs; Dr Edward Kwapong, the Chief Executive Officer of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission; Dr Eric Oduro Osae, the UNDP Technical Advisor to the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, and Ms Stella Segbawe, a former Managing Director of Donewell Insurance.

National debate

At the inauguration ceremony at the Jubilee House in Accra last Tuesday, President Akufo-Addo called for a national debate to examine the practice in other jurisdictions, especially the American system, where the principles were established and automatically adjusted.

He said that would lead to a certain objective criteria, and expressed the hope that that would lead to a constitutional debate for the country to arrive at a decision.

The President urged the committee to make references to the work of previous committees, such as the Greenstreet, the Chinery-Hesse, the Ishmael Yamson, the Ewurama Addy and the Francisca Adu-Boadoh committees, to establish consistency.

Article 71 office holders

He explained that the formation of the five-member committee was sanctioned by Article 71 of the Constitution to make recommendations to the President and Parliament for their decision on the salaries and allowances payable and the facilities and privileges available to Article 71 office holders.

President Akufo-Addo said the committee was composed on the advice of the Council of State, in accordance with the requirements of the Constitution, and extolled the virtues of its individual members, saying he believed he had appointed “responsible Ghanaians who are eminently qualified to undertake this important function”.

He told the committee members that the task would be a challenging one but said it was his expectation that they would be up to it and deliver their report expeditiously.
He assured them of the full support of his Presidency and the government.

Committee chair

The Chairman of the committee, Prof. Ntiamoa-Baidu, who is also an eminent scientist and marine conservationist, thanked the President for the honour done them by appointing them for this national assignment.

She said they were aware of the ambitious agenda the President had outlined to move Ghana forward, for which, she added, the President would require a highly committed, dedicated, enthusiastic and motivated team to realise that vision.

Prof. Ntiamoa-Baidoo said she appreciated that people in high positions should be motivated, simply by the joy of having the opportunity and privilege to serve their country, adding that decent remuneration contributed to motivating such people.

She promised the President that the committee would invest quality time and energy into its work to ensure that it delivered on its mandate and in good time to the President and Parliament.