According to Mr Mahama, he is entitled to some benefits according to Parliament but those entitlements have been withheld because he is politically active.

“I’ve been Vice President before, I’ve been President of this country before, according to parliament, I’m supposed to receive all kinds of emoluments to pay my fuel and my electricity bill, my water bill, medical bills, air travel, vehicles, everything but I can assure you that all those emoluments have been withheld because I’m politically active,” he said.

Mr Mahama reiterated this in his interaction with his former appointees in Accra on Wednesday, 23 February 2023, where he called on them to come out of retirement and join him in the fight to reclaim power in 2024.

“If I was retired and not commenting on national issues, I would have all those emoluments paid but it doesn’t bother me, because of my new granddaughter and my children, I believe that the future of this country is one that we must rescue from the hands of this looting brigade and reset the Ghanaian project, bring back good governance, strengthen the fight against corruption, put in place the things that will make it impossible for another president to come and land us in the same ditch that we currently are, and so I’m the first to announce to you that even though I was retired in 2016, I’ve come out of retirement and I’m available for the task ahead.”

Last year, Mr Mahama made similar comments about his emoluments.

He had said in an interview with Accra-based TV3 on Monday, 12 September 2022, that: “I receive only my monthly pension, like President Kufuor or President Rawlings was receiving until he died. That is all I get.”

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“I pay the electricity bill for my house, for my office. I pay the water bill for my house and my office. I live in my own accommodation so the state does not pay me anything for accommodation”.

He had noted that the only lump sum he received was “¢230,000 as salary arrears in 2013”.

However, the governing New Patriotic Party described Mr Mahama’s claims as false.

The party at the time said it had evidence of correspondence between former President Mahama’s office and the Chief of Staff contradicting his claims.

A seven-member panel of the court was expected to deliver its decision yesterday but the Registrar of the Court announced in the courtroom that the judgment had been adjourned to next year.

The case is a consolidation of two different suits filed by two National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament (MPs) — Mr Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, South Dayi, and Dr Clement Apaak, Builsa South, and the Bono Regional Chairman of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr Kwame Baffoe alias Abronye D.

It is the case of the plaintiffs that it was unconstitutional for the committee created to determine salaries, allowances and emoluments of Article 71 of the 1992 Constitution office holders to have recommended payments of salaries to spouses of the President and Vice-President.

According to the plaintiffs, spouses of the President and Vice-President were not part of the Article 71 office holders and were also not even recognised under the 1992 Constitution for them to be paid salaries.

Reliefs

Among the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs are a declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Article 71(1) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, the Professor Yaa Ntiamoa-Baidu Committee appointed by the President under Article 71(1) only had jurisdiction to make recommendations in respect of the salaries, allowances payable, facilities and privileges of Article 71 office holders under the 1992 Constitution.

Plaintiffs are also seeking a declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Article 71(1) of the Constitution, the Prof. Ntiamoa-Baidu Committee had no jurisdiction, mandate or authority to make any recommendations in respect of salaries, allowances payable, facilities and privileges of persons other than persons specified under Article 71 of the 1992 Constitution.

Furthermore, the plaintiffs want a declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Article 71(1) of the Constitution, the Prof. Ntiamoa-Baidu Committee exceeded its jurisdiction, mandate and authority when it purported to make recommendations in respect of privileges, facilities, salaries and allowances payable to the First Lady and the wife of the Vice-President.

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“A further declaration that the recommendations of the committee, to the extent that it pertains to the 1st Lady and the wife of the Vice-President of the Republic of Ghana, are null, void and of no effect,” the plaintiffs said.

In addition, the plaintiffs are seeking an order declaring the recommendations in respect of privileges, facilities, salaries and allowances payable to the First Lady and the wife of the Vice-President as unconstitutional and void.

Besides, they are seeking an order restraining the President or any other arm, ministry, department or agency of the Executive from implementing any recommendation of the Prof. Ntiamoa-Baidu Committee which pertains to the First Lady and the wife of the Vice-President.

Controversy

The cases were filed in July last year after the proposed allocated salaries approved by Parliament generated controversy and engendered public debates over the propriety to pay salaries to spouses of the President and Vice-President.

Following the controversy, the First Lady- Rebecca Akufo-Addo and the Second Lady, Samira Bawumia, last year, rejected the proposed salaries and also refunded all allowances paid to them since their spouses ascended the presidency in 2017.

Mr Arhin’s demand stems from what he said were claims made in a statement by the TUC Secretary, Dr Yaw Baah, that the duo had already been paid salaries as recommended by the Prof Ntiamoa-Baidu Emoluments Committee. 

“Salary arrears dated back to January 2017 have since been paid to the wives of President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Bawumia, in accordance with the [Ntiamoa-Baidu] Committee’s recommendation which was approved by the National Democratic Congress and New Patriotic Party Members of Parliament in January 2021,” part of the TUC statement read.

Reacting to the development in a Facebook post, Mr Arhin said Dr Baah was wrong as no such salary arrears had been paid.

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