The national leadership of the Civil and Local Government Staff Association (CLOGSAG) has directed its members at the Twifo-Hemang-Lower-Denkyira District Assembly in the Central Region to lay down their tools effective today (6 May).
CLOGSAG says the strike is in protest against the conduct of the presiding member of the Assembly Nana Kwaku Abban, accusing him of victimizing and intimidating its members at the Assembly.
General Secretary of CLOGSAG Isaac Bampoe Addo alleged that Mr Abban has on several occasions usurped the powers of the District Chief Executive Kennedy Sarpong who according to reports is indisposed.
He further indicated that a petition to the office of the Chief of Staff to address the issue has been ignored.
“We sent a letter to the Chief of Staff and as we speak, we have not had any response from her office… And so, we have no option than to order our members to stay in the house”, Bampoe said as he declared the strike during a press conference.
He gave a two-week ultimatum to the government to deal with the situation or intensify the strike at the regional and national levels.
“We are looking at about 200-250 of our members and this is the first action. If no action is taken [within two weeks] the whole of [our members] in the Central Region will join and if nothing is done, we go on a nationwide strike. The presiding member has got no role in whatever is done at the Assembly. He [the presiding member] has no authority to post our people out of the place”, Bampoe stressed.
This was brought up during the fourth round of pay negotiations with the government on November 30, 2022.
However, the discussion ended without a resolution since the parties were unable to come to an understanding.
According to Isaac Bampoe Addo, Executive Secretary of the Civil and Local Government Staff Association of Ghana, the increase in taxes suggested in the 2023 Budget Statement and Economic Policy is the reason for the new amount.
“Our demand is reasonable looking at the new tax increments in the 2023 budget,” he said.
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.”
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.”
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 per cent of Tier 2 Pension contributions placed in Government securities might be affected by the said debt restructuring agenda.
At a press conference in Accra today, 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.”
Isaac Bampoe Addo, the executive secretary of the Civil and Local Government Staff Association of Ghana (CLOGSAG), has urged the Public Services Commission (PSC) to assist in protecting the civil and local government services from political meddling and abuse.
He said the commission might create regulations by constitutional instrument for the effective and efficient discharge of its duties under this Constitution or any other law, subject to the approval of the President, as stated in Article 197 of the 1992 Constitution.
According to Mr. Addo, when the Constitution is changed, it will ensure that no parallel institutions are established to suit the narrow interests of politicians and, to a considerable part, will also avoid duplication of civil and local government tasks.
He was speaking at the Fifth Nathan Anang Quao Lectures in Accra yesterday on the theme: “Abuse of political power in the Ghana Civil Service: the bane of national development”.
It was attended by staff of CLOGSAG, the media and the general public.
Neglect
According to Mr Addo “we are where we are because we have neglected the development of the civil and local government services for political expediency”.
He, however, said no government could achieve its objectives without a well-motivated, properly structured and well-resourced administrative machinery.
The executive secretary further cautioned politicians to avoid the temptation of “creating avenues of employment for their teeming supporters to prevent unnecessary duplication of efforts and wanton dissipation of scarce government resources”.
He also alleged that the situation had led to the phenomenon of “goro boys” where cohorts of politicians interfered with the work of established government institutions.
Mr Addo, however, acknowledged that there had always been a fine blend of politics and administration in the work of the civil service to achieve the purpose of governance, adding that civil service administration could not be divorced from political influence.
Fourth Republic
The executive secretary also claimed that political interference in their work had intensified in the Fourth Republic due to a number of factors which included the winner-takes-all system, creation of jobs for “the boys,” campaign resources and loyalty, ‘moneycracy’ associated with political campaigning, patronage and clientelism, as well as involvement of bureaucrats in politics.
“Although strengthening of our existing laws will help curb this phenomenon, it is recommended, among others, that a review of the President’s power of appointment would help minimise politicisation in the country’s bureaucratic set-up” Mr Addo said.
He said the difficulties in civil and local government services now was how to “navigate” the thin line of being professional and implementing programmes of succeeding regimes to enhance the welfare of the polity without necessarily eliciting political tags.
“In our quest to be professional in our work and stick to the principles underpinning the service, we end up courting disaffection from the political divide,” Mr Addo said.
Also, he said compliance of policies of a particular government or politician also created a delicate situation for most civil servants, particularly the senior ones due to the fact that “work ethics are misconstrued as allegiance to the government of the day”.
The executive secretary cited instances of intrusion to include “tinkering” with institutional arrangements without recourse to their respective governing councils and the recruitment of “party apparatchiks” as consultants to perform routine civil service functions and paying them higher unearned salaries.
He alleged that it was such practices that had led to the ballooning of the civil service wage bill as reported in the 2020 Auditor-General’s report of ministries, departments and agencies, as well as metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies.
In order to allow retirees to choose not to participate in the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) pension plan, the Civil and Local Government Staff Association (CLOGSAG) has given notice that it would forward a proposal to Parliament to change the Pensions Act, 766.
According to CLOGSAG, this enables retirees who have completed their required 180 months of employment to get a higher pension.
According to the group, this appeal is necessary to ensure that pensioners do not fare worse under the SSNIT pension plan.
