Prof. Gyimah Boadi, head of the Centre for Democratic Development says the approval of the Chinery Hesse Committee Report on presidential emolument confirms the culture of collusion between the Executive and the Legislature to take undue advantage of the state. He told Joy News on Tuesday, “greed and mischief took over the competence of the parliamentarians” in the passage of the report. The fourth parliament of the fourth republic approved the report of the committee in which former presidents will be rewarded with two houses, six cars and GH¢460,000 a year, among others. The executive has also reportedly approved GH¢126,600, a saloon car and an all-purpose vehicle for the past Speaker of Parliament, GH¢100,000, for the Deputy Speaker, whilst the Majority and Minority Leader and their deputies as well as the chief whips and their deputies will receive a non-taxable ex-gratia and settlement grants ranging between GH¢90,000 and GH¢100,000. Prof. Boadi who had no sympathy at all for the criticisms being heaped on parliament, said the approved privileges calls into question the integrity and quality of the sort of parliament we are running. He said it is “outrageous” to leave the decision of presidential emoluments in the hands of appointees of the president, as happened in the Chinery Hesse committee report. He has therefore proposed that parliament refrain from sitting in camera on issues in which parliament is the principal beneficiaries, saying “practical common sense and rules of fairness must be allowed to prevail.” Meanwhile, Vice President John Mahama says the government will review the committee’s report in the light of the economic situation in the country. He gave the assurance when the AU Chairman paid a courtesy call on him at the Castle, on Tuesday. Listen to excerpts of the interview with Prof. Boadi in the attached audio Story by Nathan Gadugah

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