Former presidential legal adviser Kow Essuman has criticised the Mahama government for failing to pay outstanding salaries and entitlements owed to staff who served at Jubilee House under former president Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
In a Facebook post Thursday night, Essuman questioned why the government had presented four budget statements, including two mid-year budget reviews, without settling arrears he said became due in January 2025.
“Mr. Finance Minister, Hon. Ato Forson, reading FOUR budgets including two mid-year reviews without paying the staff of the Presidency, who served the last administration their arrears and entitlements which fell due in January 2025, and yet paying the current staff of the Presidency, is utterly UNREASONABLE,” Essuman wrote.
He argued that former staff of Jubilee House, the seat of the presidency, continue to await their outstanding payments while employees serving under the current administration are being paid.
Essuman said the continued delay was unfair and called on Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson to ensure the affected former Presidency staff receive the arrears and benefits owed to them.
The comments add to the ongoing political debate between the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) over public spending, the treatment of public sector workers and the transition between the two administrations.
The Ministry of Finance has not publicly responded to Essuman’s allegations, and it was not immediately possible to independently verify the status of the payments he referenced.
