By Arret Jatta
Main opposition UDP leader Ousainu Darboe has pledged to reduce the cost of running the presidency if elected, saying the office should serve Gambians rather than provide personal financial privileges to its holder.
Speaking on West Coast Radio’s Coffee Time with Peter Gomez, Tuesday, Darboe said the salary of the President’ of The Republic is huge and he would slash it to about half, alongside other heavy expenses at State House, if elected in December.
The Gambian president currently earns no less than half a million dalasis monthly, a rise Darboe said is unreasonable from about D270,000 of former president Yahya Jammeh.
He said the presidency should be viewed as a position of service, and therefore the president should not be the highest-paid person simply because he occupies the highest office.
The UDP leader also promised to review the nearly D1 billion allocated for spending at State House, particularly expenditures linked to the president’s household.
According to Mr Darboe, household expenses such as laundry and kitchen staff should not be paid by taxpayers.
“If I am receiving so much money as president, why shouldn’t I pay for my housemaids?” he asked.
He also criticised what he described as wasteful government spending, including the president’s frequent trips to inspect road projects, arguing that ministers and the National Roads Authority could conduct such inspections and report their findings to Cabinet, instead of the president moving with staff costing the nation fuel and staff time totaling millions each time he goes out.
A Darboe government, he added, would review the national budget within its first three months and remove spending it considers wasteful.
The savings, he said, would be redirected to priority areas, including healthcare and other public services.
Mr Darboe said reducing the size of government would also form part of his plans, including merging some ministries to reduce government expenditure.