THE nation’s major health service provider, the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, is in the news again for the wrong reasons.
After the recent hullabaloo over the malfunctioning elevator at the Maternity Block which forced the Health Minister, Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey, to issue an ultimatum to ensure its repair, the nation is being greeted with the sad news that surgery at the National Cardiothoracic Centre has been suspended following the theft of an 80-metre gas conveyor at the centre.
According to the Director of the centre, Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, the centre would need GH¢20,000 to replace the gas conveyor whose theft took place about two weeks ago.
Established in 1992, the Cardio Centre has greatly enhanced medical services in the country and contributed in no small way to the hailing of Korle-Bu as a neuroscience centre of excellence in West Africa.
Fact is that before its establishment, Ghana could annually send only six patients abroad for treatment at a cost of $120,000 each, but now it takes between $8,000 and $10,000 to treat the same illness in the country, with relatives of patients required to pay only half of the cost.
Currently, the centre handles about 500 cardio cases annually and it had been the hope and prayer of every well-meaning person that more support will be given the centre to enable it to improve service delivery to the people.
The DAILY GRAPHIC is, therefore, saddened that a few saboteurs have managed to stall operations at the centre by the theft of the copper pipe through which compressor air is supplied to the equipment.
What is even more worrying is the fact that the authorities at Korle-Bu created conducive conditions for the crime to be easily committed. The question is: Why should an area where such an important cable has been laid be left without adequate security lights all these years?
Apart from taking immediate steps to find money to replace the copper pipes and bring the all-important centre back to life, the DAILY GRAPHIC also suggests that security lights must be erected and the area put under 24-hour surveillance to avert a recurrence of such a shameful act.
The greatest tribute we can pay to the men and women through whose vision, determination and effort the foundation for Korle-Bu was laid is to help to make the hospital the best medical institution in Africa and one of the best in the world.
The theft of the copper wire has put the health of heart patients at risk and this unfortunate situation must be addressed immediately to retain public trust in the centre.
Korle-Bu has built a reputation as a centre of excellence and the finest source for the restoration of good health to our people. No matter the challenges, every Ghanaian is proud of this record.
In view of this, all of us owe it a duty to protect this national facility. It is crucial.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
GIVE UNTO CAESAR WHAT IS CAESAR'S (MAY 7, 2009)
ONE of the key constraints to the accelerated development of the nation has been the comparatively low revenue base of the economy.
This, in part, is explained by the fact that only a small section of the productive sector of the economy, principally the formal sector, is captured on the records of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and, therefore, carry the disproportionately larger burden of tax. The larger number of income earners who are not captured in the tax net obviously do not pay taxes.
Given the rather extremely low voluntary tax compliance levels in our society and the lack of logistics by tax collection agencies and a system to consistently enforce compliance with tax laws, the nation ends up collecting lesser tax revenue than it otherwise would have.
One of the handiest prescriptions for dealing with this low collection of tax revenue is the widening and broadening of the tax net. In other words, the large number of those who are not caught in the tax net should be captured and taxed accordingly.
Over the years, efforts have been made by governments to rope more people into the tax bracket in order to expand the national revenue base.
Even though these efforts have registered some positive results, a lot more individuals and groups are still let off the tax hook.
One noticeable group, in this respect, has been the religious bodies.
While the country’s laws, principally the Constitution in Article 94, do confer some tax exemptions on religious bodies, this has been misconstrued as a total and open-ended exemption which, therefore, entitles any religious body, even if it is engaged in profitable and productive business, not to pay tax.
Evidence abounds in our society of many religious bodies, especially churches, engaging in serious business activities in which individuals and the church itself earn not only good income but also handsome profits.
In the name of religion, and under the guise of doing charitable work for God and man, these institutions and individuals who earn incomes like the heavily taxed labourer or civil and public servants in the formal sector do not pay even a pesewa as tax.
We believe that these categories of entities and individuals qualify to pay tax and that if they have been let off the hook in the past the time is now to rope them into the tax net.
Indeed, many of these entities and individuals earn more income and make more profit than their counterparts in the formal sector who are taxed to execute social projects which are beneficial to all.
We, therefore, wish to lend our total support to the Commissioner of the IRS, Major Daniel Ablorh-Quarcoo, in his effort to rope in religious institutions and individuals earning income and profit to pay tax (see pages 24 & 49).
The nation, in addition to its traditional problems, today has a global economic downturn and unprecedented deficits to deal with and it is only through the widening of the tax net that more revenue can accrue to the government for it to execute projects such as infrastructural development and other programmes for the benefit of all.
The religious bodies, in conformity with the Gospel, should “Give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s”.
This, in part, is explained by the fact that only a small section of the productive sector of the economy, principally the formal sector, is captured on the records of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and, therefore, carry the disproportionately larger burden of tax. The larger number of income earners who are not captured in the tax net obviously do not pay taxes.
Given the rather extremely low voluntary tax compliance levels in our society and the lack of logistics by tax collection agencies and a system to consistently enforce compliance with tax laws, the nation ends up collecting lesser tax revenue than it otherwise would have.
One of the handiest prescriptions for dealing with this low collection of tax revenue is the widening and broadening of the tax net. In other words, the large number of those who are not caught in the tax net should be captured and taxed accordingly.
Over the years, efforts have been made by governments to rope more people into the tax bracket in order to expand the national revenue base.
Even though these efforts have registered some positive results, a lot more individuals and groups are still let off the tax hook.
One noticeable group, in this respect, has been the religious bodies.
While the country’s laws, principally the Constitution in Article 94, do confer some tax exemptions on religious bodies, this has been misconstrued as a total and open-ended exemption which, therefore, entitles any religious body, even if it is engaged in profitable and productive business, not to pay tax.
Evidence abounds in our society of many religious bodies, especially churches, engaging in serious business activities in which individuals and the church itself earn not only good income but also handsome profits.
In the name of religion, and under the guise of doing charitable work for God and man, these institutions and individuals who earn incomes like the heavily taxed labourer or civil and public servants in the formal sector do not pay even a pesewa as tax.
We believe that these categories of entities and individuals qualify to pay tax and that if they have been let off the hook in the past the time is now to rope them into the tax net.
Indeed, many of these entities and individuals earn more income and make more profit than their counterparts in the formal sector who are taxed to execute social projects which are beneficial to all.
We, therefore, wish to lend our total support to the Commissioner of the IRS, Major Daniel Ablorh-Quarcoo, in his effort to rope in religious institutions and individuals earning income and profit to pay tax (see pages 24 & 49).
The nation, in addition to its traditional problems, today has a global economic downturn and unprecedented deficits to deal with and it is only through the widening of the tax net that more revenue can accrue to the government for it to execute projects such as infrastructural development and other programmes for the benefit of all.
The religious bodies, in conformity with the Gospel, should “Give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s”.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
LET'S CHANGE ATTITUDE TOWARDS STATE PROPERTY (MAY 6, 2009)
THE Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Mr Albert Abongo, has disclosed that GH¢2.7 million is to be spent on renovating government bungalows to accommodate Ministers of State.
The minister, who explained that it would take at least one month to execute the job, decried the level of neglect of the bungalows, most of which are reported to be in a dilapidated state (see front page).
The lamentations of the minister, as well as those of many others before him, paint an unmistakable picture of the reckless and lackadaisical attitude people have adopted towards state property.
For a good number of people, including very well-educated and highly placed officials, state or government property belongs to no one in particular and, therefore, its mishandling must not evoke the undue concern of anyone.
In other words, to such people government property is everyone’s property to which no one person or group is entitled to be so unduly concerned about as to demand answers from those occupying them about their usage.
So it is not uncommon to see people misusing state properties, be they bungalows, vehicles or others, with many people looking on helplessly as if they have no stake in such properties or have no duty towards their safety.
Indeed, there have been instances when a few conscious and patriotic citizens have raised questions on such misuse of state property and have virtually been abused, harangued, taunted and called names. These actions have often petrified them into submission.
It is difficult to fathom how the state, especially in difficult economic times such as we find ourselves, has to devote a whopping GH¢50,000 to renovate just one bungalow which only a month or two ago was occupied by a minister or another government official.
Were those bungalows in such a horrible shape when the said officials occupied them? If not, what happened to such property within this short period of time to warrant the state expending this huge amount to renovate them?
It is an open secret that not only do many people occupying such state bungalows fail to take good care of them while they occupy them but they also at times pillage as many of the furnishings in the bungalows as they can on their exit, leaving them bare.
Recent examples of this behaviour by all manner of public officers have not painted a good image of us as a people.
We call on the Water Resources, Works and Housing Ministry to endeavour to get to the bottom of these matters by, among other things, fishing out those who looted the items from the bungalows, retrieving them and bringing such officials or officers to book.
We should also be interested in determining whether the rapid deterioration of such state bungalows has anything to do with the conduct of those who occupy them and to let the law take its course where necessary.
It is no longer acceptable to continue devoting such huge sums of money to renovate state bungalows every eight years when a new batch of government appointees are to take up residence when, with the proper orientation and enforcement of laws and accountability, we can save money and divert it to other productive areas of the economy.
We need to take steps to avoid such situations of allowing state bungalows to fall into ruins as we see now. The time to act and act boldly is now.
The minister, who explained that it would take at least one month to execute the job, decried the level of neglect of the bungalows, most of which are reported to be in a dilapidated state (see front page).
The lamentations of the minister, as well as those of many others before him, paint an unmistakable picture of the reckless and lackadaisical attitude people have adopted towards state property.
For a good number of people, including very well-educated and highly placed officials, state or government property belongs to no one in particular and, therefore, its mishandling must not evoke the undue concern of anyone.
In other words, to such people government property is everyone’s property to which no one person or group is entitled to be so unduly concerned about as to demand answers from those occupying them about their usage.
So it is not uncommon to see people misusing state properties, be they bungalows, vehicles or others, with many people looking on helplessly as if they have no stake in such properties or have no duty towards their safety.
Indeed, there have been instances when a few conscious and patriotic citizens have raised questions on such misuse of state property and have virtually been abused, harangued, taunted and called names. These actions have often petrified them into submission.
It is difficult to fathom how the state, especially in difficult economic times such as we find ourselves, has to devote a whopping GH¢50,000 to renovate just one bungalow which only a month or two ago was occupied by a minister or another government official.
Were those bungalows in such a horrible shape when the said officials occupied them? If not, what happened to such property within this short period of time to warrant the state expending this huge amount to renovate them?
It is an open secret that not only do many people occupying such state bungalows fail to take good care of them while they occupy them but they also at times pillage as many of the furnishings in the bungalows as they can on their exit, leaving them bare.
Recent examples of this behaviour by all manner of public officers have not painted a good image of us as a people.
We call on the Water Resources, Works and Housing Ministry to endeavour to get to the bottom of these matters by, among other things, fishing out those who looted the items from the bungalows, retrieving them and bringing such officials or officers to book.
We should also be interested in determining whether the rapid deterioration of such state bungalows has anything to do with the conduct of those who occupy them and to let the law take its course where necessary.
It is no longer acceptable to continue devoting such huge sums of money to renovate state bungalows every eight years when a new batch of government appointees are to take up residence when, with the proper orientation and enforcement of laws and accountability, we can save money and divert it to other productive areas of the economy.
We need to take steps to avoid such situations of allowing state bungalows to fall into ruins as we see now. The time to act and act boldly is now.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
CALL OFF THE STRIKE (MAY 5, 2009)
JUNIOR doctors at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) last week embarked on an indefinite strike in protest at the non-payment of accumulated fuel allowances due them by the hospital authorities.
The strike, apart from its limited scope, has nevertheless impacted negatively on the otherwise smooth and timely delivery of services to the thousands of in-patients and out-patients who throng the hospital daily.
Many patients have had to wait for far longer hours than was previously the case before seeing a doctor, with some reportedly returning home without being attended to.
We can sympathise with the junior doctors that the relatively longer delay of their unpaid arrears dating as far back as 2006 gives them the pretext for taking action to secure their interests. What has been legitimately earned must be paid on time.
This notwithstanding, we believe that the junior doctors could still have exercised a little but more restraint for the matter to be dealt with comprehensively.
It is on record that neither the Minister of Health, Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey, nor the Chief Executive of KATH, Dr Nsiah Asare, was given a hint of the breakdown of ongoing talks to resolve the matter, which could have precipitated the strike.
Again, unlike the previous situation where the talks were not backed by substance, this time with the intervention of the minister, a concrete programme of action had been drawn up not only to begin clearing the backlog of arrears but also to pay all up and prevent their recurrence in the future.
Indeed, KATH authorities have since announced a schedule of payments and a similar agreement reached under the auspices of Dr Yankey through negotiations with the junior doctors of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital has put paid to negative sentiments that could have degenerated into agitation and eventually to strike action.
The timing of this strike was also unfair to the minister, given the efforts he has injected into finding amicable solutions to these problems that long predated his assumption of office.
If the junior doctors have had to wait since 2006, largely on account of assurances that were not backed with concrete and verifiable programmes, why would they take strike action now, when a clear and demonstrable evidence of dealing decisively with the matter has come from the current leaders of the health sector?
We urge the junior doctors to reciprocate these positive gestures by, among other things, calling off the strike now, so that full and normal delivery of service at the hospital would resume.
In making this appeal, we are conscious of the need to reciprocate the efforts of our leaders in the various sectors, who show sufficient understanding of and commitment to the timely and amicable resolution of problems or grievances of workers.
The problems in the health sector are many and complex and this calls for a keen sense of understanding and co-operation from everybody to bring under control these problems to ensure a more cost-effective health delivery system for the benefit of the people.
We once again appeal to the junior doctors and all health sector workers and in fact all workers to have the patience for the government to come out with a salary structure that will be satisfactory to all.
The strike, apart from its limited scope, has nevertheless impacted negatively on the otherwise smooth and timely delivery of services to the thousands of in-patients and out-patients who throng the hospital daily.
Many patients have had to wait for far longer hours than was previously the case before seeing a doctor, with some reportedly returning home without being attended to.
We can sympathise with the junior doctors that the relatively longer delay of their unpaid arrears dating as far back as 2006 gives them the pretext for taking action to secure their interests. What has been legitimately earned must be paid on time.
This notwithstanding, we believe that the junior doctors could still have exercised a little but more restraint for the matter to be dealt with comprehensively.
It is on record that neither the Minister of Health, Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey, nor the Chief Executive of KATH, Dr Nsiah Asare, was given a hint of the breakdown of ongoing talks to resolve the matter, which could have precipitated the strike.
Again, unlike the previous situation where the talks were not backed by substance, this time with the intervention of the minister, a concrete programme of action had been drawn up not only to begin clearing the backlog of arrears but also to pay all up and prevent their recurrence in the future.
Indeed, KATH authorities have since announced a schedule of payments and a similar agreement reached under the auspices of Dr Yankey through negotiations with the junior doctors of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital has put paid to negative sentiments that could have degenerated into agitation and eventually to strike action.
The timing of this strike was also unfair to the minister, given the efforts he has injected into finding amicable solutions to these problems that long predated his assumption of office.
If the junior doctors have had to wait since 2006, largely on account of assurances that were not backed with concrete and verifiable programmes, why would they take strike action now, when a clear and demonstrable evidence of dealing decisively with the matter has come from the current leaders of the health sector?
We urge the junior doctors to reciprocate these positive gestures by, among other things, calling off the strike now, so that full and normal delivery of service at the hospital would resume.
In making this appeal, we are conscious of the need to reciprocate the efforts of our leaders in the various sectors, who show sufficient understanding of and commitment to the timely and amicable resolution of problems or grievances of workers.
The problems in the health sector are many and complex and this calls for a keen sense of understanding and co-operation from everybody to bring under control these problems to ensure a more cost-effective health delivery system for the benefit of the people.
We once again appeal to the junior doctors and all health sector workers and in fact all workers to have the patience for the government to come out with a salary structure that will be satisfactory to all.
Monday, May 4, 2009
FREEDOM WITH RESPONSIBILITY (MAY 4, 2009)
Media practitioners, friends of the media and lovers of free expression across the world yesterday marked World Press Freedom Day with a number of ceremonies to highlight the challenges confronting practitioners and the need to expand the frontiers of freedom of expression.
In Ghana, media practitioners, under the aegis of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), are organising a number of events to help sensitise the public to the role of practitioners in the growth and sustenance of our democratic process, as well as to the difficulties and challenges confronting them.
The role the media plays in the political, economic and socio-cultural development of nations the world over cannot be overemphasised.
Within the broad ambit of informing, educating and entertaining the public, media practitioners, as part of their social contract with the people, are enjoined to hold the feet of government to the fire of accountability.
In fulfilling this important function, the media will not just be living up to its constitutional obligations, but will also be protecting and promoting societal or national interests.
This, without doubt, forms the basis for the creation and sustenance of a fairer, more just and accountable government, and in this way, for the building of a more democratic and harmonious society.
It is, therefore, largely in recognition of these attributes that the media is often referred to as the Fourth Estate of the Realm, holding in check the powers, functions and activities of the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary, the three traditional arms of government.
The media and its practitioners have contributed significantly to our bid to entrench democracy as the system of governance in the country in the past one-and-a-half decades.
Journalists have been at the vanguard of the exposure of all sorts of ills in our society, ranging from corruption and abuse of office by politicians and administrative officers through the tyranny and plunder of the nation’s resources by an array of unaccountable leaders to outmoded customary practices that inflict incalculable harm on the citizenry and infringe their fundamental human rights and freedoms.
These and other commendable acts notwithstanding, a number of shortcomings, including unprofessional conduct such as deliberately biased and mischievous reportage, acceptance of bribes and gifts (soli) to project some and debase others, the concoction, peddling and defence of falsehood and self-serving interests have combined to tarnish or undermine an otherwise impressive image of the journalism profession.
We are happy that media practitioners themselves, through their professional association and individual media houses, have already accepted the challenge, and are organising seminars, workshops and lectures to help improve on the orientation and skills of practitioners, and in this way enhance journalistic standards.
It is also heart-warming that, through Mr Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, Deputy Minister of Information, the government has given the assurance that there would be no government interference in the professional work of the media, and that the passage of the Freedom of Information Act would be given an added urgency.
This should not only accord journalists ready and easier access, but also more space and unhindered latitude to carry through their professional duties.
We salute journalists on this occasion.
In Ghana, media practitioners, under the aegis of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), are organising a number of events to help sensitise the public to the role of practitioners in the growth and sustenance of our democratic process, as well as to the difficulties and challenges confronting them.
The role the media plays in the political, economic and socio-cultural development of nations the world over cannot be overemphasised.
Within the broad ambit of informing, educating and entertaining the public, media practitioners, as part of their social contract with the people, are enjoined to hold the feet of government to the fire of accountability.
In fulfilling this important function, the media will not just be living up to its constitutional obligations, but will also be protecting and promoting societal or national interests.
This, without doubt, forms the basis for the creation and sustenance of a fairer, more just and accountable government, and in this way, for the building of a more democratic and harmonious society.
It is, therefore, largely in recognition of these attributes that the media is often referred to as the Fourth Estate of the Realm, holding in check the powers, functions and activities of the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary, the three traditional arms of government.
The media and its practitioners have contributed significantly to our bid to entrench democracy as the system of governance in the country in the past one-and-a-half decades.
Journalists have been at the vanguard of the exposure of all sorts of ills in our society, ranging from corruption and abuse of office by politicians and administrative officers through the tyranny and plunder of the nation’s resources by an array of unaccountable leaders to outmoded customary practices that inflict incalculable harm on the citizenry and infringe their fundamental human rights and freedoms.
These and other commendable acts notwithstanding, a number of shortcomings, including unprofessional conduct such as deliberately biased and mischievous reportage, acceptance of bribes and gifts (soli) to project some and debase others, the concoction, peddling and defence of falsehood and self-serving interests have combined to tarnish or undermine an otherwise impressive image of the journalism profession.
We are happy that media practitioners themselves, through their professional association and individual media houses, have already accepted the challenge, and are organising seminars, workshops and lectures to help improve on the orientation and skills of practitioners, and in this way enhance journalistic standards.
It is also heart-warming that, through Mr Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, Deputy Minister of Information, the government has given the assurance that there would be no government interference in the professional work of the media, and that the passage of the Freedom of Information Act would be given an added urgency.
This should not only accord journalists ready and easier access, but also more space and unhindered latitude to carry through their professional duties.
We salute journalists on this occasion.
WORKERS WELFARE PARAMOUNT IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (MAY 4, 2009)
RALLIES and marches were held across the world yesterday to mark International Labour Day.
The day, which is to show international solidarity with the working people of the world, is a pivot around which the collective interests and aspirations of the working people the world over is articulated.
It is also an occasion for organised labour to point the way forward not only in respect of improvement in remuneration and working conditions of workers but also on the formulation and adoption of policies and programmes by the government and decision makers at workplaces to sustain jobs and enterprises.
In Ghana, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and other allied labour organisations organised an impressive march to mark the day, which was attended by the President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills, and his Vice, Mr John Dramani Mahama, at the Independence Square in Accra.
The clarion call from the workers at the parade, as had been with previous May Day parades, was for the government, as the single largest employer in the country, and employers in the private sector, to endeavour to increase significantly the wages and salaries, as well as better their conditions of service.
To the government, the workers specifically called for the implementation of the Single Spine Salary Structure, the restoration of the End-of-Service Benefit and the implementation of the new pension scheme under the New National Pension Law 2008.
There can be no doubt about the genuineness of the demand for improved wages and conditions of service for workers, especially given the appreciable increase in inflation and consequently the rise in the cost of living stretching back to the last half of last year.
These and other factors have contributed to the eroding of the purchasing power of workers and their dependants.
We are happy to note that President Atta Mills, in recognition of the legitimacy of these workers’ demands, has already indicated the resolve of the government to meet these demands, including the acceleration of the implementation of the Single Spine Salary Structure, which would, in addition to enhancing wages, also address the gross distortions in earnings of workers across the labour spectrum.
We also hasten to add that the recent increase in the minimum wage by the government and the pledge to progressively review workers’ remunerations to attain the ideal of paying workers living wage need the commendation and support of workers.
It should not be lost on us that we are currently stuck in the quagmire of global economic meltdown and a weak and very shaky domestic economy with an unprecedented fiscal deficit.
These, without doubt, would constrain our growth and our ability to generate the requisite resources to support any excessive demands.
Some of the surest ways out of this predicament is for us, as a people, to reduce waste and inefficiency to the barest minimum while stepping up productivity in our various workplaces.
We can only move forward together to overcome these challenges when we recognise that the destiny of workers, the government and other employers are closely linked and intertwined and that we need to forge a close and harmonious working relationship to float together.
We wish to take the opportunity on this important day to salute our hard-working people, who have sacrificed throughout the years to bring this country to where it is now.
The day, which is to show international solidarity with the working people of the world, is a pivot around which the collective interests and aspirations of the working people the world over is articulated.
It is also an occasion for organised labour to point the way forward not only in respect of improvement in remuneration and working conditions of workers but also on the formulation and adoption of policies and programmes by the government and decision makers at workplaces to sustain jobs and enterprises.
In Ghana, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and other allied labour organisations organised an impressive march to mark the day, which was attended by the President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills, and his Vice, Mr John Dramani Mahama, at the Independence Square in Accra.
The clarion call from the workers at the parade, as had been with previous May Day parades, was for the government, as the single largest employer in the country, and employers in the private sector, to endeavour to increase significantly the wages and salaries, as well as better their conditions of service.
To the government, the workers specifically called for the implementation of the Single Spine Salary Structure, the restoration of the End-of-Service Benefit and the implementation of the new pension scheme under the New National Pension Law 2008.
There can be no doubt about the genuineness of the demand for improved wages and conditions of service for workers, especially given the appreciable increase in inflation and consequently the rise in the cost of living stretching back to the last half of last year.
These and other factors have contributed to the eroding of the purchasing power of workers and their dependants.
We are happy to note that President Atta Mills, in recognition of the legitimacy of these workers’ demands, has already indicated the resolve of the government to meet these demands, including the acceleration of the implementation of the Single Spine Salary Structure, which would, in addition to enhancing wages, also address the gross distortions in earnings of workers across the labour spectrum.
We also hasten to add that the recent increase in the minimum wage by the government and the pledge to progressively review workers’ remunerations to attain the ideal of paying workers living wage need the commendation and support of workers.
It should not be lost on us that we are currently stuck in the quagmire of global economic meltdown and a weak and very shaky domestic economy with an unprecedented fiscal deficit.
These, without doubt, would constrain our growth and our ability to generate the requisite resources to support any excessive demands.
Some of the surest ways out of this predicament is for us, as a people, to reduce waste and inefficiency to the barest minimum while stepping up productivity in our various workplaces.
We can only move forward together to overcome these challenges when we recognise that the destiny of workers, the government and other employers are closely linked and intertwined and that we need to forge a close and harmonious working relationship to float together.
We wish to take the opportunity on this important day to salute our hard-working people, who have sacrificed throughout the years to bring this country to where it is now.
Friday, May 1, 2009
TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT STATE VEHICLES (MAY 1, 2009)
FOLLOWING closely on the heels of the government’s announcement that it is reviewing the sale of 14 state bungalows to some former government functionaries, private individuals and entities is the directive to immediate past government appointees in possession of state vehicles that are less than two years old to return them.
The latest announcement has caused an enormous furore, threats of court action by some individuals who contend that they did no wrong in acquiring those vehicles and notices of defiance by some who are being requested to top up their payments before they can legally take possession of the vehicles.
According to a Deputy Information Minister, Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, more than 50 of such vehicles are in the possession of former government appointees. Out of these, 18 are said to be less than two years old, while the rest were under-valued.
So far, none of the people, both current and past government officials, who have spoken on the issue has quoted any law guaranteeing the sale of state vehicles to their users on leaving office and, therefore, it could be assumed, for now, that the practice is a convention until later proved to be otherwise.
Be it as it may, a circular dated February 23, 2005 and issued by the then Chief of Staff, Mr Kwadwo Mpiani, to ministers of state and regional ministers and copied to all chief directors and regional co-ordinating directors directed that state vehicles sold to users on their request should not be less than two years old and their sale should not create difficulties to the organisations.
It is obvious that the objective was to forestall a situation where fairly new state vehicles would be sold to state functionaries whose tenure of office had ended and a situation where the sale of such vehicles could cause a mobility and other problems for the state institutions to which they were assigned.
What better safeguards could there be than these?
It will be good, therefore, for those former appointees who have adopted a rather confrontational approach to the directive to calm down and co-operate with the new government to establish that, indeed, the sale of the vehicles to them is not at variance with the convention of selling state vehicles to their users.
Happily, three former government appointees, namely, Mr Andrew Awuni, former Press Secretary to former President Kufuor; Alhaji Abubakar Siddique Boniface, former Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, and the former Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hikah-Benson, have responded to the government’s ultimatum to return state vehicles in their possession (see page 3).
It will also be advisable for the Mills government to make public its findings on issues only after the facts had thoroughly been established to avoid maligning former appointees.
For the larger public, these developments — the sale of state vehicles and bungalows to government appointees at the end of their tenure of office — bring into sharp focus once again that it is becoming a norm for such appointees to become the automatic beneficiaries of good cars and in some cases good houses, in addition to their ex gratia, at the end of a four-year term of office.
For sure some high public officers too enjoy the benefit of buying their cars on retirement but comparatively some of these public and civil servants serve for long periods of time, some of them, 20 years and more.
But no matter how one looks at the issue, it’s about time we took a second look at this practice of selling state vehicles and bungalows to former government appointees and public civil servants so that if we would want to maintain it, the state would not ultimately be the loser.
The latest announcement has caused an enormous furore, threats of court action by some individuals who contend that they did no wrong in acquiring those vehicles and notices of defiance by some who are being requested to top up their payments before they can legally take possession of the vehicles.
According to a Deputy Information Minister, Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, more than 50 of such vehicles are in the possession of former government appointees. Out of these, 18 are said to be less than two years old, while the rest were under-valued.
So far, none of the people, both current and past government officials, who have spoken on the issue has quoted any law guaranteeing the sale of state vehicles to their users on leaving office and, therefore, it could be assumed, for now, that the practice is a convention until later proved to be otherwise.
Be it as it may, a circular dated February 23, 2005 and issued by the then Chief of Staff, Mr Kwadwo Mpiani, to ministers of state and regional ministers and copied to all chief directors and regional co-ordinating directors directed that state vehicles sold to users on their request should not be less than two years old and their sale should not create difficulties to the organisations.
It is obvious that the objective was to forestall a situation where fairly new state vehicles would be sold to state functionaries whose tenure of office had ended and a situation where the sale of such vehicles could cause a mobility and other problems for the state institutions to which they were assigned.
What better safeguards could there be than these?
It will be good, therefore, for those former appointees who have adopted a rather confrontational approach to the directive to calm down and co-operate with the new government to establish that, indeed, the sale of the vehicles to them is not at variance with the convention of selling state vehicles to their users.
Happily, three former government appointees, namely, Mr Andrew Awuni, former Press Secretary to former President Kufuor; Alhaji Abubakar Siddique Boniface, former Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, and the former Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hikah-Benson, have responded to the government’s ultimatum to return state vehicles in their possession (see page 3).
It will also be advisable for the Mills government to make public its findings on issues only after the facts had thoroughly been established to avoid maligning former appointees.
For the larger public, these developments — the sale of state vehicles and bungalows to government appointees at the end of their tenure of office — bring into sharp focus once again that it is becoming a norm for such appointees to become the automatic beneficiaries of good cars and in some cases good houses, in addition to their ex gratia, at the end of a four-year term of office.
For sure some high public officers too enjoy the benefit of buying their cars on retirement but comparatively some of these public and civil servants serve for long periods of time, some of them, 20 years and more.
But no matter how one looks at the issue, it’s about time we took a second look at this practice of selling state vehicles and bungalows to former government appointees and public civil servants so that if we would want to maintain it, the state would not ultimately be the loser.
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