Attempts by former President John Mahama to salvage his image over the ex-gratia saga appears to be doing more damage to him as Chairman Wontumi has even reminded him of the plush government house he wanted to keep as part of his retiring package.
The Ashanti Regional Chairman for the New Patriotic Party reminded the former President about how he wanted to swindle Ghanaians by renovating the official residence for the Vice President with a whopping amount of $14million and turning around to tell Ghanaians that he wanted the house as part of his retiring benefit.
Chairman Wontumi in an interview with Wontumionline.com stated that after being elected as President of Ghana, Mr. John Mahama decided to stay in the office residence reserved for his vice and decided to also keep it as personal property.
“I want to challenge the office of the former President to discredit what I am saying. John Mahama wanted to keep the state house which he used state money of $14million to renovate as part of his ex-gratia. It took the media and respected people in the country to sink common sense into his head”, Chairman Wontumi said as he reminded the public about the controversy the matter generated.
He continued that “This same man turns around to claim that he has never received an amount of GHC14 million as gratuity. If John Mahama can use $14million to renovate just one house, what shows he won’t pocket GHC14 million as ex-gratia?” Chairman Wontumi wondered.
Bawumia shames Mahama
It would be recalled that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia said he had not seen the controversial $14 million Vice President residence started by the past administration headed by Mr. John Mahama.
He revealed the closest he has ever come to seeing the house expected to accommodate him was through paper work.
“There is no work going on,” he told a gathering of news editors at the first media encounter with the President at the Jubilee House.
Numbers don’t lie
If ex-gratia payment is to be counted and awarded like ballon d’or, former President John Mahama would have emerged as the politician with the most, Chairman Wontumi has underscored.
The Ashanti regional Chairman for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) stated that in 2008, 2012 and 2016, former President John Mahama took home gargantuan ex-gratia payments making him far richer than the GHC14million Chairman Abronye revealed has been paid to him.