Emoluments for Prez and Veep spouses: Captain Smart delivers a message to Samira Bawumia
Series of controversies have been generated after the formalisation of emoluments for spouses of the president and vice.
Even though the spouses are neither elected nor appointed thereby excluding them from the benefits of Article 71 officials, Parliament has approved that salaries be given to them.
This entitlement which would be backdated to cost the nation over GHC5 million for the First and Second ladies is what has been described as “bloody money” by Blessed Godsbrain Smart, a TV and radio show host.
Captain Smart asserts it would be detrimental on the integrity of the spouses to go for that ransom whereas they don’t render any service(s) for the state.
According to him, pregnant women are dying at the hospitals for lack of facilities, the reason he describes the salary as bloody, for no work done.
For the First Lady –Rebecca Akufo-Addo, Mr. Smart says the husband is serving his second term of office as president and Ghanaians therefore have no collateral to stop her from taking the money unlike Samira Bawumia, whose husband is now seeking to occupy the highest office of the land.
He says if the Second Lady accepts the emolument, her husband would pay with his presidential ambition.
After former President Mahama rejecting the money –on behalf of his spouse – Mr. Smart says the onus lies on Samira to follow suit or else, would be seen by Ghanaians as callous.
“Government already caters for everything at the office of the President and Vice’s spouses. If you go for this money, we’ll punish your husband with our votes”
“If you take it you’re heartless. It means you don’t think about Ghanaian women”
“This is bloody money because a lot of pregnant women are suffering and dying at the hospitals and we need money to fix the challenges there,” he expressed.
He, however, asked the First Lady to consider the women of Ghana –just as she championed the construction of the Emergency Mother and Baby Unit at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) — to also reject the salary.
“Rebecca, if you think about women like you championed the construction of the Children’s ward at KATH, don’t take this money,” Smart said.
He was speaking on the Smart Show on Smart TV streamed on YouTube Friday, July 9, 2021.
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