This event will be held on the #MahamaConversations platform and will focus on the theme “Resetting Ghana for Good Governance and Accountability.”
John Mahama has emphasised that Ghana’s governance is at a pivotal moment, marked by entrenched injustices and an economy that is inflicting severe hardships on many citizens.
He aims to tackle these urgent challenges at an upcoming forum where he will share his vision for a brighter future for the country.
At the forum, the leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) intends to unveil initiatives aimed at promoting greater accountability within the government.
A significant element of his proposal is the creation of a Governance Advisory Council, which he believes will be crucial for enhancing political governance, fighting corruption, and safeguarding human rights.
The Governance Forum is set to reach a broad audience, as it will be streamed live on television, radio, and various online platforms, including all of Mahama’s social media accounts.
This strategy is designed to foster public involvement and encourage active participation in the vital conversations about governance in Ghana.
The dealers, who blamed the depreciating cedi on the Finance Minister, are calling for his removal from office.
According to them, if the President fails to sack his Finance Minister, they will hit the streets to press home their demand.
Speaking at the Launch of Transport Forum, held in Accra Wednesday, October 26, 2022, the President of the Automobile Dealers Union, Kwaku Boateng, bemoaned the effects of the depreciation of the cedi against the dollar on their business.
“The increase in the dollar is affecting us, we have spoken to the President, and we’ve written several letters about the Finance Ministry. We’ve realised that the President has made up his mind not to mind anyone to remedy the situation.
“We have also realised that our brother Ken Ofori-Atta is the problem when it comes to the rising dollar. So we will hold a press conference next two weeks; when we’re done, we’ll continue with a demonstration on November 19.”
Mr Boateng stressed that: “We [union] will be demonstrating against President Nana Addo over his refusal to sack Ken Ofori-Atta because he’s the President, he appointed him, so if he’ll sit down for Ken Ofori-Atta to destroy Ghanaian businesses then we will demonstrate.”
The automobile dealers have also called on the Freight Forwarders to join in the demonstration to compel the President to remove the Finance Minister from office as both work together.
The Forum for Public Sector Associations and Unions have asked the Government not to apply a “haircut” to Tier 2 Pension Funds as part of a “probable” debt restructuring programme.
The Forum said it had taken note of media reports suggesting that about 94 percent of Tier 2 Pension contributions placed in government securities might be affected by the said debt restructuring agenda.
At a press conference in Accra on Thursday, October 20, 2022, Mr Isaac Bampoe Addo, Chairman of the Forum, said any such decision on the Tier 2 Pensions would contravene provisions of the National Pensions Act, 2008.
“If the Government was to pursue the restructuring of Ghana’s debt by touching pension funds placed in government securities, it would be tantamount to the deceit of benefits envisaged under the Three Tier Pensions Scheme,” he said.
Mr Addo said following the media reports, the Forum officially wrote to the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) for clarification.
He said the NPRA, in its response to the Forum, assured that: “there’s no such policy or decision at the moment to restructure Ghana’s debt and as regards the 94 per cent of Tier 2 pension contributions placed in government securities.”
Mr Addo said the decision to place a larger proportion of Tier-2 funds into Government Securities, was due to the fact Government paid all the Temporary Pension Fund Account (TPFA) at the Bank of Ghana in government securities. He said the Occupational Pension Schemes had efficiently grown the Tier-2 Pensions Funds that would allow the schemes to pay “better lump sum” to its contributors on retirement.
“Thus, if the government would want to touch these funds, that are privately managed, it would be tantamount to the Government reaping where it has not sown,” he said.
The Forum is made up of nine public sector Unions and Associations, including the Civil and Local Government Staff Association, the Ghana National Association of Teachers; the Ghana Medical Association; the Ghana Registered Nurses’ and Midwives’ Association, and the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT).
The rest are the Judicial Service Staff Association of Ghana, Coalition of Concerned Teachers Ghana, and the Ghana Hospitals Pharmacists Association. The Forum constitutes about 70 per cent of the public sector payroll. Ghana’s Pension Scheme is in three tiers. The First Tier is the Basic National Social Security Scheme for all workers in Ghana. It is a defined benefit scheme and mandatory for workers to have 13.5 per cent contributions made on their behalf, and managed by SSNIT.
The Second Tier is a defined contributory Occupational Pension Scheme mandatory for workers with 5 per cent contribution made on behalf of members.
The contribution is managed privately by approved Trustees. The Third Tier which includes all Provident Funds and all other Pension Funds outside Tiers I and II is a voluntary scheme.
Section 102 of the Pensions Act states: “the accrued benefits of a member in an occupational pension scheme shall not be attached in execution of a judgment debt or be used as a charge, pledge, lien or be transferred, assigned or alienated by or on behalf of the member.”
Renowned investigative journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni, has berated the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice +Chairperson of the Electoral Commission but CHRAJ’s rulings were very problematic.
“I don’t think that we will be having some of these names if the Chief Justice of the Republic of Ghana was declared unfit to hold public office by CHRAJ,” he said.
He intimated that should CHRAJ have ruled that the current Chief Justice is unfit for office and President Akufo-Addo chooses to ignore its ruling, the pressure on him will force him not to take the position.
“A similar thing happened with the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission and we didn’t find CHRAG having the balls to make the right pronouncement,” he added.
The forum was organised by the Media Foundation for West Africa on Tuesday, October 2, 2022.
