Former President John Mahama has been branded a ‘liar’ by Mr. Bernard Antwi-Boasiako over claims that he would scrap the payment of ex-gratia if voted into office again in 2024.
The Ashanti Regional Chairman for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) classified the statement by Mr. Mahama as “empty” and “lies” crafted to hoodwink voters who don’t pay attention to details and the messenger.
In an interview with Wontumionline.com shortly after monitoring the launch of Mr. Mahama’s campaign to become the flagbearer of the NDC on Thursday, Mr. Bernard Antwi-Boasiako aka Chairman Wontumi stated that the irony of Mr. Mahama’s promise is that he has failed to convince his wife to emulate the current first and second lady when they returned to government coffers allowances which were paid to them.
“John Mahama is a liar and everything he says with regards to elections is lies. This is a lair promising Ghanaians he would scrap ex-gratia but not long ago, his wife failed to act diligently by unlawfully keeping state allowances which were paid into her accounts. John the liar failed to see this and convince her to return the money but today he wants to be flagbearer and he is promising his party folks something sensitive about scrapping ex-gratia”, Chairman Wontumi said.
Former President John Dramani Mahama has promised to scrap the retirement benefit given to the Executive under Article 71 officeholders, known as ex-gratia, when he becomes president again.
According to him, his government will start the constitutional processes to scrap ex-gratia in the first year of his administration.
“The payment of ex-gratia to members of the executive under Article 71 will be scrapped. And the necessary constitutional steps to abolish that payment will start in earnest in 2025.
“We will also begin the process of persuading the other arms of government other than the executive to accept the removal of this ex-gratia payment,” he said.