A former Rector at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Professor Stephen Adei has told Ghanaians not to expect that the pay cut by the President and the Council of State will solve the current problems facing the country.
In his view, the gesture only shows that the leaders are leading by example and recognizing that the country is going through challenges.
To be able to raise the needed revenue to solve the problem, he said Ghanaians must accept to pay the E-levy.
Prof Adei further asked the President to also reduce the size of his government as a way of saving money.
“Two weeks ago, I said that the executive, parliament should cut their emoluments by 25 per cent. Let us get it right, even if they do, it is a small amount, it is not going to save us from this situation but it is a leadership example. You are sending the message to the people that we are in difficulty, people are suffering and we want to suffer with you. So that hopefully, in a year or a year and a half, we will all come out”
“So don’t let anybody think that when they cut these salaries then the problem is solved all together because we are talking about half a billion when we need billions.”
The former Board Chair of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) further said “I expect [the President] to find ways of cutting expenditure, increase revenue, cutting off the size in the government,
“I think that even though all of you don’t like it, I think that we should go for the E-levy, it is a tax which we need now to save Ghana from its current situation. The reason is that there are very limited avenue in the short-term to raise revenue. If you and I don’t support the government at this stage we will pay it through the other way – falling Cedi, rising inflation. So people don’t realize when they say they wont pay the E-levy, you will end up paying,” he said.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has reduced the salaries of all his appointees by up to 30 percent.
This is one of the measures introduced by the government to deal with the economic problems facing the country at the moment, the Presidency said.
