IDEG Boss On 998 Presidential Staffers:It's Not Quantity But Quality Of People

Executive Director of the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), Dr Emmanuel Akwetey, has said Nana Akufo-Addo’s ability to deliver on his promise will depend on the quality of people he employs.

“It is not the quantity but the quality of people and their tested ability to deliver what he [Akufo-Addo] wants. If we have a thousand people and we can also prove that the quality of the work they do generates much more than they spend on them, then we can say it’s worth it. But if not, then exactly what are they doing?” Dr Akwetey said.

Dr Akwetey was speaking Monday evening on the MultiTV’s current affairs programme, PM Express.

Government has been justifying maintaining close to a thousand staffers to work for the Jubilee House, the seat of the Presidency.

The staff-strength of 998 has been criticised as huge and an unnecessary drain on the public purse.

However, Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid, said the President remains committed in his resolve to protect the public purse despite concerns his government too many appointees.

Related: Akufo-Addo Jubilee House staff to hit 1697 as salaries go up by 50%- Ablakwa

Mustapha Hamid said despite the criticisms about the number of appointees serving in the current regime compared to that of his predecessor, the Akufo-Addo government is operating with a budget more than half less of what John Mahama had.

“Our list, for example, is a little above the President Mahama list but if you look at the budget for office machinery under President Mahama it is way above our budget…For 2017 they had about ¢3 billion but we came in 2017 with about ¢1.5 billion,” the Information Minister defends.

The right machinery
Included in the 998 staffers are about 706 civil servants who had been working for the state before President Akufo-Addo took over the reins of government.

Dr Akwetey is convinced the civil servants should remain core to the President’s efforts to deliver on the many development promises.

“As a matter of fact the machinery for the president to deliver his policies, to translate into goods and begin to solve problems is the civil service. That is the state employees. They have different kinds of competencies,” Dr Akwetey said.

Watch the full show in the video below.