A year ago today, Mr. Eugene Arhin, the Director of Communications at the Presidency, assured Ghanaians that there will be no special allowances for government appointees who decided to give out 50% of their salaries to support the fight against COVID-19.

Ministers of State, the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, the deputy Chiefs of Staff, Deputy Ministers, Secretary to the President, Secretary to the Cabinet, Presidential Staffers and Presidential Aides at the Presidency on Monday decided to cut out fifty percent (50%) of their three months’ salaries to be paid into the COVID-19 National Trust Fund.

The fund was also meant to assist in the welfare of the needy and the vulnerable in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic.

“Nobody was forced to contribute to this fund. We all did this voluntarily and so we just have to manage for the next three months in order to be able to sail through. I don’t think it should be that much of a problem,” he said.

Read the full story originally published on March, 31, 2020, on Ghanaweb

Director of Communications at the Presidency, Eugene Arhin has assured that no allowances would be cooked up to make up for Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Presidential Staffers who have decided to give out 50% of their salaries to support the fight against COVID-19.

All Ministers of State, the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, the deputy Chiefs of Staff, Deputy Ministers, Secretary to the President, Secretary to the Cabinet, Presidential Staffers and Presidential Aides at the Presidency on Monday decided to cut out fifty percent (50%) of their salaries for April, May and June to be paid into the COVID-19 National Trust Fund, a fund established by the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for the fight against the Corona Virus.

The fund is also meant to assist in the welfare of the needy and the vulnerable.

The move is a follow up to a decision made by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Vice President Dr. Mahmudu Bawumia to dedicate 100% of their three months salaries to the fund.

In an interview on Accra based Joy FM monitored by MyNewsGh.com, Director of Communications at the Presidency Eugene Arhin said the gesture was voluntarily and modest contribution to the resources mobilization drive to raise funds for the purpose of fighting the global pandemic of COVID-19 which has hit several countries including Ghana.

He assured that no underhand initiatives would be taken in the form of cooked allowances to make up for the half of the salaries to be given out.

“Nobody was forced to contribute to this fund. We all did this voluntarily and so we just have to manage for the next three months in order to be able to sail through. I don’t think it should be that much of a problem,” he said.

When asked for assurances on whether allowances would not be engineered to cover up for the appointees who are making the contributions, Mr Arhin said “I can assure you and mark my words that nothing like that is going to happen.”

Meanwhile the Controller and Accountant General has been notified to effect the deductions into the COVID-19 National Trust Fund.