Monthly verification of public officials was recommended by BNI after its investigation into 3 months arrears of teachers – former DCE

The Ahafo Regional Communications Officer for the National Democratic Congress and a former District Chief Executive for Tano North, Hon Apraku Lartey, has given details in the three months salary arrears of teachers and how it saved the country huge amount of money.

The former DCE sited an example at his district where the exercise conducted by the then BNI saved Ghana over Gh₵70,000.

According to the former DCE, these monies would have been in the pockets of some few individuals who do not deserve to be paid such huge amount. The former DCE however admitted that though who were genuinely affected were made provisions in the 2016 fiscal budget to pay them and that continued by the current government and ended in 2018.

Kindly read the full write up below;

ON THE MATTER OF THE THREE MONTHS SALARY ARREARS OF TEACHERS

MY TAKE AS FORMER DISTRICT CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF TANO-NORTH CONSTITUENCY

1. Prior to 2017, recruitment of staffs into GES were decentralized, in that, regional and district directors of education had the authority to initiate the process of recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staffs.

2. However, this opportunity was flagrantly abused by some of the district directors of education in concert with their HRs to their advantage.

3. The modus operandi was, for instance teachers who were recruited in 2013 had their appointment backdated to 2011 and those who were recruited in 2011 backdated to 2009, those recruited 2015 backdated to 2013 and so on.

4. Most of these affected teachers were tacitly aware that their appointment letters have been dubiously backdated but did not know that they will not be entitled to the arrears of all the years, only to be told that they are entitled to what they have worked for.

5. In some cases there were negotiations among some of these affected teachers, the directors of education and the HR of the district educations directorate to agree on the backdating, so that the arrears will be shared accordingly. Under this negotiation the teachers agreed to take the arrears deemed them whiles the rest of the arrears are shared among the district director of education, their agents in the banks and the HRs.

6. As part of the verbal agreement, the teachers agreed to open their first salary accounts with a specific rural bank, certain banks such as GCB bank and ADB were excluded from the set of banks qualified for the negotiations.

7. Some of the affected teachers who chose to maintain their existing banks or open accounts with any of the excluded banks were cajoled to change them to the specified banks or the HRs secretly change those accounts to rural banks of their choice when filing the IPPDs before they are sent to Accra to be processed.
8. When the bulk arrears come, the district directors of education and their HRs with their agents in these rural banks agree to debit the accounts of these affected teachers with the amount of arrears relative to how many months they really worked for and keep the arrears of the years manufactured by these district directors of education.

9. The withheld amount was then shared among the district directors of education, their agent in the Banks and the HRs who colluded in that act of criminality.

10. The information about the nefarious activities of these dishonest individuals in power got to the ministry of finance, ministry of education, Ghana education service and the auditor general; the following measures were taken by these four institutions to curb the phenomenon; they included;
a. Payment of three months arrears to all teachers yet to receive their first salary pending investigation. Whiles these teachers await the outcome of the investigation into the allegation, they continue to receive their monthly salaries.
b. District BNI officials were charged in 2016 to thoroughly investigate the issue and submit their report, after which the affected teachers will have all their arrears paid them should they satisfy all the requirements; BNI considered the authenticities of the documents proving that these teachers reported at post in correspondence with the date stated on their appointment letters, for this exercise the log books and time books of their schools were scrutinized.

11. The final report was issued in 2017 after a thorough investigation by the BNI, the proper dates of reporting that corroborate the appointment dates on the appointment letters were either affirmed or disaffirmed, and actions were then initiated upon the findings of the BNI to pay the arrears of those teachers who genuinely due.

12. Although, some of the teachers captured in this web were genuine teachers who have proper dates of appointment and proper dates of reporting indicated in their log books, and time books, every teacher who was later found to posses proper appointment letter and have genuinely reported in their schools timely had their arrears paid them.

13. Based on the findings by the BNI, the payment of the arrears of these affected teachers commenced in 2017 under the previous administration in line with provisions made in the 2016 fiscal year, payment was however, completed in 2018 under the current administration .

14. The NPP government itself had no issues with the steps taken by the NDC government to address this decades old problem that has impacted negatively on the wage bill of the country, yet, why it turns its’ coat to make political capital out of it is mind boggling.

15. The exercise saved the country humungous amount of money. for instance, in Tano-North district the exercise saved the state GHC70,000, in Sunyani West GHC500,000 and over GHC 250.000 in Atebubu Amantin etc.These monies will have ended in the pockets of few individuals.

16. It must be noted, that, it was consequent to this exercise by the NDC administration that the system of monthly verification of public officials that was recommended by the BNI was introduced, the system has insured maximum accountability in the public payroll, and it is saving the country huge sums of money that hitherto would have been lost to the state.

By;
Apraku Lartey (Hon)
Ahafo-NDC Communication Officer
Former DCE-Tano-North
0244122511