A relative of mine recently went to the gas station and asked for $200 worth of petrol.

She said the attendant chuckled at the request. Thinking that it was the lowest amount of petrol ever purchased, she was shocked to learn that other drivers had asked for even less! Even though gas prices are now back at attainable prices, other products have increased, so there is still no way to pay for that essential product. Pretty much how it is across the globe.

So imagine how my jaw dropped when I heard that the former president of Ghana will be getting a retirement package that makes me want to get into politics.

Perks for ghana pm

Among the perks are six, yep, six cars (with chauffeurs, mind you); two houses of his choice (and I don't think he'll choose Portmore-style quads) and a lump sum that's nearly half a million dollars in total. The package also includes a budget for entertainment, security and a foreign holiday each year. Man, I want to be president of Ghana, even for a few days! Needless to say, the critics are not pleased.

One former president told them to shove off with their offer (now, there's a man I would vote for), although you'll never know if he took a little something under the quiet. Maybe he thought it would look bad if he took it; kind of like what I think our goodly prime minister thought when he envisioned rolling down the toll road in his glistening new Audi A8. Whatever their motives, I think they made the right choice by the way. Now is not the time for big spending.

I agree that if someone holds the country's highest office, then he/she should be 'taken care of' when the tenure is over. But the Ghana package seems a little excessive, especially in light of the global economic crunch. I didn't know any country could afford that kind of package. In a time when everybody is worrying about belt-tightening, our bros from the mother continent break out the golden suspenders to keep up the pants.

My point is that I don't think everybody truly gets the concept that the world is in deep financial cow dung. The credit crunch didn't just crop up out of nowhere; it took years to fix. So at least for now, there probably has to be a bit more belt-tightening.

The thing with belt-tightening, though, is that the human waist can only contract so far and no more. Forget tightening, we may have to go without the belt entirely.

Later.

Give me a retirement package at daviot.kelly@gleanerjm.com.