The Payment of Ex-Gratia to Article 71 Holders Kills Our Economy

We are in a country that does not produce anything significant but depends largely on the importation of almost everything including ordinary toothpicks. This tells us that once we don't export anything substantially, we have to depend on the dollar to do our importation of goods and services into this country. Remember, the cedis have no use in the international market. Once you leave the shores of Ghana, the cedis become worthless.

The government is also the larger employer of workers in this country which means, it's the government that pays most workers at the end of the month. What it means is that; all the taxes we pay in this country are used to pay workers' salaries. The question here is, how much taxes do we even pay to the central government as Ghanaians? I guess you and I already know the answer to the question.

Going forward, the central government can't undertake any meaningful development because all the taxes are used to pay workers leaving the central government empty-handed. Also, even the loans we get from other external sources are sometimes used to pay salaries after the politicians have taken their cuts through corrupt means. Because; it's not all the money we take as loans that goes straight into the projects or purposes the loans or grants are usually taken for.

Therefore, it makes it difficult for the government to execute any developmental projects in this country. Many Ghanaians know this for a fact. One doesn't need to be an economist like Bawumia to understand these basic facts. Even Bawumia's economics is only good in the classroom since it has no use for any proper political analysis or maybe, political power has clouded his ability to use his economic expertise as we saw him do while in opposition. Sincerely speaking, Bawumia is now like the Ghana Cedis. He has drastically lost value in the local market. No wonder he's turned himself into an IT pundit with his digitalisation agenda which isn't also working.

Aside from the fat and juicy salaries that are paid to some selected workers in Ghana, there is this higher cost against the government every four years when the government has to pay huge sums of money which is termed as ex gratia to article 71 office holders. Why must someone who keeps working get end-of-service benefits more than once? What kind of logic is that if it's not to benefit the greedy and insensitive politicians?

What I have seen about the payment of these huge sums of money to these article 71 officers is greed, wickedness, and sheer insensitivity on the part of those who receive this money every four years. The amount paid to this article 71 office holders varies according to the office and position one holds Let's assume that Mr B is appointed as a DCE or an MP and his salary is GHC 7,000 a month. This salary alone is juicer than the ordinary teacher's salary. Then, he worked for 8 years in office and his ex-gratia is GHC 427,000 per each of the four years and he will make 854,000.00 at the end of the 8 years. Because he will take the first GHC 427,000.00 at the end of the first four years and once he is still in office as a DCE or reelected as an MP, he will take another GHC 427, 000.00 after fours year again.

Therefore, this whopping amount of money is just for 8 years of work as an MP or DCE. Now, multiply this amount by the number of MPs or DCEs alone across the country and see how much money is wasted on this killer ex gratia thing. However, an ordinary teacher who has taught his entire life for close to 20 or more years goes home with half of this amount as his end-of-service benefits. What's pathetic is the fact that; the poor teacher's salary isn't anything to write home about, yet he goes home with nothing again. Tell me if this isn't a mere display of stupidity and greed by our leaders.

Our educational system will continue to flop if politicians progressively make policies or laws just to favour themselves at the expense of the poor ordinary citizens in this country. Why must the politicians keep robbing the nation? I agree that everyone deserves some end-of-service benefits, but must it be paid to some selected people every four years while others just go home with nothing after an entire working lifetime? I can only call this an act of stupidity, wickedness, corruption, and insensitivity on the part of the government and even those who receive this money.

Do you know what this money which is given to just a selected group of people every four years can do in some villages where they have no electricity, schools, proper health care services, roads, etc? The youth of this country must stop being too susceptible to the little freebies from the greedy politicians, who are stupid and greedy and start to demand that they are accountable and responsible for the development of this country and that everything must be done to get the country working well with the right things being done.

Finally, until we scrap off this killer ex gratia and especially at this moment of economic hardship the country is going through, we shan't be able to do anything better as a country and there will certainly be anarchy in this country soon. I, however, don't wish for anything like that but we may not have a choice when things go beyond control.

Ghanaians are watching!
Attached to this write-up is a source document showing the payment of ex gratia to the various article 71 holders in Ghana. Source: online search. " educandghana.net" read it and you will understand why the ex-gratia is a killer!

"Ex-gratia Amounts Received by Article 71 Officeholders in Ghana https://educandghana.net/ex-gratia-amounts-received-by-article-71-officeholders-in-ghana "