If the double salary grabbing MPs aren’t keen on E-Levy, they should please return their ‘loot’

Some of us, as a matter of principle, do not begrudge the Members of Parliament who are resisting the passage of the E-Levy with an excuse that it will overburden their constituents.

That being said, since our Members of Parliament aren’t keen on the E-Levy, we would please urge those who allegedly grabbed gargantuan double salaries to refund all the monies as soon as possible.

It is nearly two years since the sensational vineyard news spiralled through that some NDC Members of Parliament have allegedly grabbed double salaries.

Regrettably, however, as I write, nothing meaningful has been done towards bringing the suspects to book.

It would thus appear that the alleged suspects are hiding behind the dowdy and largely unjust parliamentary privileges and concessions.

I must confess that I had mixed feelings when I read some time ago that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service had submitted the dockets on the investigations of the double salary grabbing NDC Members of Parliament to the Attorney General’s Office for advice.

In fact, my ambivalence stemmed from the fact that Ghana’s justice system tends to clampdown heavily on the goat, cassava and plantain thieves, and more often than not, let go the impenitent criminals who hide behind the narrow political colorations.

To be quite honest, it is quite nauseating to see some public officials who prefer to be called honourable behaving somewhat dishonourably.

Truly, Ghanaian politics has become a scorned profession, not a noble profession it used to be.

Once upon a time, anyone who gained a seat in parliament was looked up to and respected by all. Alas this is not the case anymore.

Our Members of Parliament must earn the honourable prefix/suffix by living exemplary lives, and desist from desecrating our honourable parliament.

How can honourable Members of Parliament knowingly keep double salaries to the detriment of the poor and disadvantaged Ghanaians?

For argument sake, if the law can excuse a suspected double salary grabbing Member of Parliament from prosecution, the law might as well make room for the equally important contributors such as farmers, teachers, and doctors among others.

Why must we allow a section of the population to perpetrate criminalities and then hide behind the law?

I have always maintained that if we are ever prepared to beseech the fantastically corrupt public officials to only return their loots without any further punishment, we might as well treat the goat, plantain and cassava thieves same. For after all, what is good for the goose is good for the gander.

I am afraid, the democratic country called Ghana may not see any meaningful development, so long as we have public officials who are extremely greedy, corrupt, and insensitive to the plight of the impoverished Ghanaians.

It may sound somewhat hackneyed in the ears of some observers, but the fact remains that we began life with the likes of South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore, and, look at where they are today.

They are diligently making cars, Mobile phones, electronics, good roads and good housing. And, they have put in place pragmatic policies and programmes to developed their respective countries and just look at where we are today.

Disappointingly, however, we now go to those countries we started life with, and beg for donations, or borrow money--do you recall the STX housing deal which was unsuccessfully pursued by Mills/Mahama administration, and yet cost us a staggering $300 million ? I weep for my beloved Ghana.

When it comes to the prosecutions of the political criminals, we are often made to believe: “the wheels of justice turn slowly, but it will grind exceedingly fine.”

Where is the fairness when the political thieves could shamefully dip their hands into the national purse as if there is no tomorrow and go scot free, while the goat, cassava and plantain thieves are incarcerated?

In sum, the sum of the double salaries may not be commensurable with the proceeds of the E-Levy, it will go a long way to alleviate the plight of the impoverished Ghanaians.

K. Badu, UK.

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