The Presidential Press Secretary Mr. Andrew Awuni has said it is premature to ask government to reduce salaries of its officials to pay for fuel price hikes in the country, as was done in Ivory Coast some few weeks ago. According to him the mitigation packages announced by President Kufuor, is comprehensive enough to mitigate the effects of fuel price hikes, without resorting to other extreme measures. “The president announced a number of mitigation measures that is costing the country several millions of cedis and with particular reference to the reduction of salaries of government officials, it is misleading the way we are going about it with government.” In an interview with Joy FM’s Stephen Anti on Wednesday, the press secretary said the government is doing more than just reducing salaries, but rather responding positively to global crises. The press secretary also defended President Kufuor’s decision to embark on the trip to Trinidad and China. According to him the President was the only African Head of State invited as the special Guest of honour to commemorate the Emancipation day ceremony in Trinidad and Tobago. When his attention was drawn to the fact that there is an emancipation day celebration here in Ghana as well, Mr. Awuni said “In the case of Trinidad it is a global issue and every year they choose one African head of state to be the special guest of honour.” On the President’s trip to China Mr. Awuni said the geo-political situation in the world today requires that the president embark on the trip. “If you understand the politics of the world today, you will understand that what is happening in China is more than just an Olympic games. The government has come under intense criticisms by the opposition for what they refer to as needless Presidential travels with huge financial burden on the state. Author: Nathan Gadugah