The Presidency has provided further details on why compensation expenditure at the Office of the President is projected to rise from GH¢100 million in 2025 to GH¢248 million in 202
The report indicates that the Presidency has provided further details on why compensation expenditure at the Office of the President is projected to rise from GH¢100 million in 2025 to GH¢248 million in 2026, following questions raised in a JoyNews Research analysis of the Presidency’s latest staffing report.
It further notes that the analysis, published on Monday, found that President Mahama’s administration had reduced political appointees at the Presidency from 357 in 2023 to 233 in 2025, a decline of 124 positions based on the latest publicly available reports.
However, while staffing numbers had fallen, the 2026 Budget projected compensation at the Office of the President would increase by about 148%, from GH¢100 million in 2025 to GH¢248 million in 2026.
The article did not attribute the increase to any single factor.
Instead, it outlined several possible explanations, including the impact of revised Article 71 salary determinations, changes in staffing levels after 2025 and the possibility of outstanding compensation obligations.
The publication prompted a response from the Presidency.
The Presidency subsequently held a press briefing seeking to explain the reasons behind the sharp rise in compensation at the Office of the President.
Speaking later that evening on Top Story on Joy FM, Mr Kwakye Ofosu stated the article’s headline and accompanying news cards risked creating the impression that compensation had increased despite lower staffing levels, without providing sufficient context.
“You don’t do a report, leave gaps, get people to speculate and say things that aren’t true and then turn around and say, ‘Can I ask a question?'” he said.
He added: “For those who don’t go beyond the headline, you have created an impression in their mind that something amiss has happened.”
According to the government spokesperson, the increase in compensation does not reflect salary increases introduced by the Mahama administration.
Instead, he stated the salaries currently being paid to presidential staff were determined under the previous administration following recommendations of an Article 71 committee and approved shortly before the end of President Akufo-Addo’s tenure in January 2025.
“Every salary being taken now by political appointees at the Presidency was determined under President Akufo-Addo,” he said.
Mr Kwakye Ofosu explained that the compensation projections for 2026 include several additional obligations beyond current salaries.
