Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah has criticized President John Dramani Mahama’s recent announcement to cancel fuel allowances for political appointees, describing it as “populist gimmickry” that lacks genuine sacrifice and legal backing.
Assafuah argued that while the move might generate positive headlines, it exposes a deeper issue of “hypocrisy, not honesty.”
He questioned the President’s sincerity, pointing out that the directive does not apply to Mahama himself because he is “elected” and therefore exempt.
“So much for leading by example,” he wrote on his official Facebook page.
According to Assafuah, the fuel allowances in question form part of official service conditions for government appointees, and cancelling them unilaterally amounts to “an illegal and unethical variation of service conditions to the detriment of officeholders.”
“That’s not bold leadership, it’s shallow populism,” he stated.
Drawing on historical context, Assafuah recalled a similar episode in 2013 when then-President Mahama announced a 10% pay cut to fund CHPS compounds.
“But what happened?” he asked. “Many of his own appointees secretly opted out, and at the instruction of his Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, their monies were refunded. So who was really sacrificing?”
He contrasted Mahama’s recent directive with a 2022 initiative by the Akufo-Addo government, where a 30% pay cut for government appointees was publicly announced by the then Chief of Staff as a genuine cost-saving measure.
“That was leadership with shared responsibility and not empty theatre,” Assafuah noted.
He further claimed that most appointees don’t even receive “fuel allowances” as popularly imagined.
Instead, the real drain on state resources is “the fuel depot at the Osu Castle and Jubilee House, where appointees draw fuel directly, leaving the government with millions of cedis in debt to GOIL.”
Assafuah called on President Mahama to “start there” if he truly wants to cut waste and reform government spending.
Meanwhile, a statement issued by the presidency and signed by spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu confirmed the fuel allowance cancellation as part of broader cost-cutting measures.
The presidency says the decision is in line with President Mahama’s belief that “leadership must also bear part of the sacrifices it’s calling on the people to make.”
Other measures reportedly include the reduction in the number of ministers and the cancellation of satellite TV subscriptions for government offices.
Still, Assafuah remains unconvinced: “President Mahama is not sacrificing, he’s grandstanding.
‘Ghana deserves more than Mahama’s headline-chasing and hollow gestures. We deserve principled leadership and responsible governance.”
