The Ghana Nurses and Midwives Trainees Association confirmed to Citi News that a number of the trainees had received the SMS alerts on their phones confirming payment.

“Trainee Nurses have started receiving messages indicating that November and December allowances have been paid so we are grateful to the President and the Ministry of Health for their efforts in addressing our concerns,” the Public Relations Officer for the Association, Akugri Avokbil Gadafi said.

Some of the trainees had complained to Citi News that they had not received a pesewa since the official restoration of the allowances.

The status of such trainees remains unclear as Mr. Gadafi said, “for now, those who did not receive a pesewa [from Septmeber], actually we have not confirmed as to whether they have received from September or that of October.”

Delays must end

Mr. Gadafi said his outfit couldn’t “be sure whether after this issue, the issue of delays will be addressed” but he urged the Government to make sure the delays in payment do not recur.

“We have not faced much frustration but the issue is that the delay in payment is something that has been occurring since the restoration so we are hoping that the Ministry should try their best, as they have addressed our concerns and it [the delays] shouldn’t repeat itself,” he added.

The issue of allowance for trainee nurses became a major campaign point in the 2016 elections after the New Patriotic Party promised to restore the payments which were scrapped by the Mahama government.

The government restored the allowances of GH¢400, effective September 2017 with an elaborate ceremony to the joy of the trainee nurses who had complained about the hardships they faced without those funds.

President Akufo-Addo said an amount GHc232 million had been allocated for the stipend, with the health trainees set to receive GHc 400 each month.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The issue of allowance for trainee nurses became a major campaign point in the 2016 elections after the New Patriotic Party (NPP) promised to restore the payments which were scrapped by the Mahama government.

[contextly_sidebar id=”bRdTikKJaWFQ3CkKC5kKLGhSUSHzB5MQ”]The government restored the allowances of GH¢400, effective September 2017, to the joy of the trainee nurses who had complained about the hardships they faced without those funds.

However, some of the trainees have told Citi News that they have not received a pesewa since the announcement, adding that several calls to responsible authorities to have the monies released have proved futile.

The Public Relations Officer for the Ghana Nurses and Midwives Trainees Association, Akugri Gadafi, in a Citi News interview said the delayed release of the allowances is leading to increased frustration among the students.

“It has affected us in so many ways because these allowances were restored purposely to support us financially as we undergo our training. And as it was launched by the President, all parents are aware that we now receive GHc400 as allowances. In actual fact, most of us have not received our allowances since September 2017,” Gadafi said.

According to him, they have complained to the Health Ministry on several occasions “and they keep on giving us assurances but it has gotten to a point that we no longer don’t know what to do.”

“They have given us another assurance that they have now compiled the data and we are all hoping that before this month of January ends, trainee nurses will receive their monies and when it fails, we as the national executive board will decide the next line of action,” he added.

The Public Relations Officer of the Health Ministry, Robert Cudjoe in response to these concerns, said government will soon release funds for payment of the allowances.

He explained that the payment had delayed due to challenges with the Ghana Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS).

He assured the nurses that the outstanding payments will be made by the end of this week.

“We are expecting Controller and Accountant General’s Department to release the November and December allowances, but this time around there is this thing called GIFMIS platform which all institutions are supposed to get their releases from. Unless the money has been released through the platform, there is no way you can get money to spend so that is a contributory factory. We are hoping that by close of this week, they should see their monies sitting in their accounts.”

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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They are also demanding the payment of their allowances which are in arrears.

Members of the Association are livid over what they say is the calculated attempt to delay the posting of three batches of veterinary doctors.

About forty-five of the affected doctors are also yet to receive their allowances after completing their housemanship in 2016.

The Treasurer of the Association, Dr. Emmanuel Koduah, told Citi News a further delay will compel them to resort to other legal means to get their grievances addressed.

[contextly_sidebar id=”3AgHUJyBSQAmntUn6hmI5fWJGewVXhtp”]“They are supposed to give us our license but they are aloof . They are not responding to anything just because they felt that we threatened them that if they do not respond to us , we will hit the courts about the whole issue. The leaders of the Council became angry that we wanted to exercise our franchise.”

“We wrote a letter to them and they told us that yes, we have a case, but our letter was not strong enough. We are not giving any ultimatum, but they should act with dignity. They should respect the position and call the doctors involved and post them.”

Attempts to get a response from the Veterinary Council and the Agric Ministry have so far been unsuccessful.

Ghana has only 32 practicing veterinary doctors – Council

It appears the Veterinary Council has been battling with a few challenges for sometime now.

The Veterinary Council of Ghana had earlier appealed to the government to resource the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) School of Veterinary Medicine, to improve its infrastructure and faculty to advance veterinary training, research and healthcare delivery.

Dr. Jonathan Amakye-Anim, Chairman of the Council, said this was urgent since the country currently had only 32 certified practicing veterinary doctors.

He said at least 200 of such practitioners were needed to enhance effective veterinary care for the benefit of the nation.

Dr. Amakye-Anim, who was addressing an oath-swearing and induction ceremony for the School of Medical Sciences, Dental School and the School of Veterinary Medicine of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, called for a change in attitude towards veterinary education.

“About 70 per cent of all human diseases emanates from animals,” he noted, stressing that given the current shortage of veterinary doctors, it would be difficult for the country to effectively deal with the emerging challenges such as the outbreak of more sophisticated animal-related diseases.

Frustrated jobless Doctor writes to Citi FM, cries over neglect

Aside veterinary doctors, some trained, but unemployed doctors have questioned the efforts of the Health and Finance Ministries in absorbing them into the public service.

Some 245 doctors, who graduated in 2014, indicated that all efforts to secure financial clearance for their absorption have proved futile, while many hospitals lack doctors, putting the lives of patients at risk.

In a heartfelt petition to Citi News to highlight their plight, a doctor, John-Diego Kosoe, lamented the dire situation of his colleagues who are idle.

This, according to Mr. Kosoe has even compelled some doctors to leave Ghana for greener pastures.

The petitioner noted that, “out of frustration, I know 3 of my colleagues who contracted huge personal loans and left the country for Germany, just to hustle out there, to do German language courses and get absorbed into their system.”

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By: Marian Ansah & Pius Amihere Duku/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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According to its Convener, William Agbodo, the government has failed to pay service personnel two months into their service, a situation that is negatively affecting its members.

He has therefore called on the government to pay their allowances or they will be forced to picket at the presidency to demand same.

“Since we started service from 4th September, nothing has been done by the government so far to ensure that our monthly allowance is paid. They keep telling us to exercise a little patience but up till now, there is no hope that they will be paying us soon. Most of us come from far away to our work places, and we always have to walk a long distance to get to our places.

“If we come to realization that nothing will be done, then we will be compelled to picket at the Flagstaff House. All National Service persons are willing to partake in such activities and we know that the government will be willing to listen to us.”

In February, some NSS personnel threatened to picket at the seat of government [Flagstaff House] following the government’s refusal to implement the 60% increment in the allowance of personnel announced by the previous government.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) government before exiting power, approved an increase in the allowances of national service personnel from GH¢350 to GH¢559.

The increment for the service personnel took effect on January 1, 2017.

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Addressing a news conference in Accra, the President of the Agriculture College Students Union, Sampson Chimbur Sanika, complained about how the various institutions lacked infrastructure and logistics which affects not only students, but also teachers in the institutions, a situation that generally affects the performance of students.

He noted that, the purpose for the establishment of the colleges was to train extension officers and certified veterinary officers who would convey new and improved methods of agriculture to the country’s farmers, in order for the agric sector, to see a steady growth and development.

He however said this objective has not been achieved as thousands of graduates from the agric colleges remain unemployed by government for that purpose.

According to him, agriculture employs nearly 60% of the Ghanaian population, which is crucial not only for job and wealth creation, but also food security.

Mr. Chimbur Sanika also appealed to government to restore their cancelled allowance because students depend heavily on the allowance to support themselves.

According to him, the allowance was cancelled by the previous government in order to expand infrastructure to admit more students into the institutions, but since the current government has restored teacher and nursing trainees’ allowances, they also deserve that benefit.

The Union however threatened to picket at the Ministry of Agriculture should the government refuse to heed their calls.

There are five state Agriculture colleges in the country, which admit almost 3,000 people yearly.

The colleges which run a three-year certificate course in general agriculture, are the Kwadaso College of Agriculture in the Ashanti Region, Damango Agriculture College in the Northern Region, Ohawu in the Volta Region, Ejura in the Ashanti Region and Animal Health and Production for veterinary officers in the Northern Region.
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By: Gifty Tracy Aminu/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Supreme Court judge, William Atuguba, who spoke on behalf of the Judges at the Annual General Meeting of the Association of Magistrates and Judges of Ghana today [Wednesday], demanded that judges be given what he called an enhanced leave allowance as well as entertainment allowance, among others, to compensate for their efforts at ensuring justice in the country.

According to him, considering the important role judges play in the country, such a move will significantly curb the issue of corruption in the judiciary.

“The sheer volume of litigation, the legal issues involved in almost every case and the range of research this entails are probably unknown to the public. Working under such conditions is particularly structured against a background of poor remuneration and other working conditions… and I am glad to note that, the bench in recent times has become more proactive in seeking this legitimate welfare and engaging the executive on these issues such as delayed payments of our few entitlements.”

“We call on the bar, the judicial council and the bench to coordinate their efforts and engage the Article 71 committees and other relevant authorities to press for recognition of and response to the fact that the bench has a unique and pivotal role to play in this country and its conditions of service must correspondingly be unique and should not be considered in common with any generalized policy on pay structure. In this connection, I call for legislation of an enhanced leave allowance, substantial entertainment allowance, handsome allowance to compensate for loss of private professional practice as it is enjoyed by doctors, teachers and others.”

Lower court judges threaten strike over salary increment

These demands come days after over one hundred and fifty lower court judges threatened to abandon the court if their demands for a ten percent salary increase are not adhered to.

A letter from the Chief of Staff seen by Citi News some months ago, approved the demands of the judges. But the judges indicated that, government had failed to pay their monies months after the approval.

Sources within the association told Citi News they arrived at the decision after several failed attempts to get the Finance Ministry to pay them their monies.

Lower court judges angry over salary slash

In June 2016, lower court judges issued a stern warning to government to immediately abandon a planned move to revise their conditions of service.

The judges who work in the magistrate and circuit courts across the country, said they were being short-changed with the proposal presented to them for a review of their salaries.

Speaking on behalf of the judges, His Honor Aboagye Tandor, said they will advise themselves if nothing is done about their concerns.

“Certain reforms have been done with regards to our salaries without any views or recourse to us. No inputs were made to us and we saw that there were some discrepancies so our members were of the view that the purported letter that was brought should be withdrawn.We were surprised that as members of the lower bench we would have conditions reviewed even before we are notified. You cannot review that recourse, it should be withdrawn…”

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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Speaking at the 2016 Ghana Military Academy graduation parade at Teshie in Accra on Friday, September 16, President John Mahama said government had taken note of some challenges confronting military personnel in the country and had taken various measures to address some of them.

“I have approved a recommendation from the military high command and the Armed Forces Council for the introduction of a Ghana government paid leave allowance of 700 US dollars for all ranks on external peace keeping operations,” Mahama said.

The president also announced that all civilians who work with the military would also get a GHC 40 increment in their allowances.

“Rationed allowances for all uniformed personnel have also been increased to GHC 120 and clothing allowances for civilian employees has also been increased to GHC40. These adjustments take effect from 3rd September 2016 and we shall continue to upwardly review other allowances at the appropriate time.”

The president further noted that “at the State Banquet Hall last Tuesday I announced that we will in the next four years assist the Ghana Air Force to establish a flight training school which would be a center of excellence in West Africa.

“We’ll increase the numerical strength of the Ghana Armed Forces and continue to provide the needed up-to-date logistics to facilitate and enhance your performance.”

The President called on the graduating officers to live up to expectations and work together for the good of the country.

Senior Under Office, Addo Emmanuel Larbi, was given the Sword of Honour as the best all round cadet officer.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The demand, which comes with barely three months to presidential and parliamentary elections, in December, is the second in the year.

The demand was made in a leaked internal memo for negotiations delivered to the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission in Accra by the workers of the Commission.

[contextly_sidebar id=”DOiA8ghvA1UO1VrLuzWUtV5mPYzxUjRo”]According to them, unlike other members of the public service, they are restricted in their social interactions for fear of being tagged political.

“There are certain public places open to all that employees of the Commission cannot participate since they may be wanting. The exercise of neutrality becomes more sensitive during and after the conduct of elections since we are most of the times perceived wrongly by our actions in the course of our work,” the memo said.

The EC workers also demanded 30 gallons of fuel monthly for officers at the Regional Directorates and the Head Office who use their vehicles for official duties.

“We have Senior Officers at the Regional Directorates and at the Head office who require official vehicles to do their official work but do not have access to official vehicles so they use their private vehicles to do their official work. It is our considered opinion that these officers are granted 30 gallons of fuel per month to facilitate their improvement and ensure productivity of work.”

This is not the first time employees of the Electoral Commission have raised concerns about the payment of some allowances due them.

EC staff to strike over low salaries

In January this year, the workers union and the Senior Staff Association of the Electoral Commission (EC), served notice of an impending strike over poor salaries and conditions of service.

According to them, all attempts to get these issues resolved have proved futile.

The workers in their resolutions, addressed to the Chairperson of the Commission, Charlotte Osei, after a crunch meeting said barring any intervention, they will begin the sit-down strike on February 15, 2016 and proceed on a full blown strike on February 22, 2016.

The strike however did not take place.

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By: Marian Ansah & Umaru Sanda Amadu/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The Minority alleged that the Bui Power Authority had been allowed by government to spend 3 million dollars on a Golf Park and other recreational facilities for top management of the Brong Ahafo-based power producer.

But speaking exclusively to Citi News’ Richard Dela Sky, Dr. Kwabena Donkor said, although he would not speak to the figures quoted by the Minority, he sees nothing wrong with building recreational facilities for staff of the power producer.

”To attack the calibre of engineers and critical support staff to a location such as Bui you are going to have to create facilities to keep them settled in…,” he said.

Dr. Donkor noted that it is imperative that these facilities are built to enable the Authority ”attract and retain critical” staff.

He explained that in Ghanaians allow pettiness to cloud their judgement. According to him the fact that Bui Power is not producing the amount of power needed doesn’t mean they should not have health facilities, recreational facilities and the basic amenities that will make life comfortable for the staff.

”How many of them [Minority] will want to go and stay at Bui if they don’t have health facilities, Schools, recreational facilities…?” he questioned.

Touching on the amount of money the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) spent on rent for an office accomodation, Dr. Donkor advised that the NPA should purchase their own office.

”I will prefer they [ NPA] buy a property out right…,” he said.

He further stated that instead of  publishing figures stating how much  institutions are spending, Ghanaians should rather find out why and challenge them on the issues.

The NPP also alleged that the NPA spends $63,000 monthly as rent for offices at the East Legon residential area.

By: Evans Effah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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President John Mahama has appointed Dr. John Kofi Baffoe, an Economist with the African Development Bank as a Technical Advisor to the Minister for Finance.

He has also appointed Mrs. Mona Quartey, as a deputy Minister at the Ministry of Finance.

But according to the Obuasi West MP, the  country does not need changes at the Finance Ministry, but rather, a strong political will from President Mahama to transform the economy.

“Our economy is going through difficulties right now and the decisions that are needed to turn round things are political decisions; …but what we have been lacking has been the political courage and commitment to cut the waste and the corruption and to provide a fair environment in which our production base can expand,’’ he said.

Mr. Kwarteng noted that the president should rather tackle the most important issues affecting  the nation’s economy. He urged the president to pay attention to his ‘’political decisions’’ instead of changing the ‘’technical people or his lieutenants’’.

By: Evans Effah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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