Let’s migrate office holders to SSPP — MP

The Member of Parliament for Ashiaman constituency and the Deputy Majority leader in Parliament, Mr Alfred Agbesi, has promised to lead efforts at integrating the salaries of Article 71 office holders to the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP).

He is, therefore, urging the government to speed up work on the amendment bills currently being prepared by the Constitutional Review Implementation Committee (CRIC) to Parliament so that the changes needed to be done to migrate onto the single spine would be quickly effected.

Mr Agbesi was contributing to discussions on the country’s wage bill which is overwhelming the state’s ability to invest in social and economic development projects, at a two-day presidential stakeholders’ forum on the SSPP in Ho.

Leaders of public sector workers at the forum had insisted that they were not only to blame for the galloping wage bill, but parliamentarians, political appointees and Article 71 office holders were equally liable.

Mr Agbesi, in his submissions, said it was unfortunate that whenever the issue was being discussed, parliamentarians were first cited as culprits in the huge compensation bill that was stifling the economy.

He reminded all that the judges were also part of the Article 71 office holders, as well as others appointed by legislative acts.

He conceded that the inequality in the salaries of public servants was “too much,” and promised to commit himself to the passage of any bill to address that.

The Presidential adviser, Mr P. V. Obeng, who also chaired the forum, when asked by the Daily Graphic the extent of his liability as an appointee of the government to the burgeoning wage bill, said for the better part of his appointment, from the period of President Atta Mills, he had not benefited from any allowance or stipend.

He said he did not insist on being paid because he saw his efforts as a contribution to the ‘Better Ghana’ agenda of the President, as well as his party in the development of the country.

He said often, the perception that political appointees were paid huge sums of money was wrong.

By Caroline Boateng, Accra
Daily Graphic/graphic.com.gh/Ghana