Forty former Members of Parliament (MPs) have sued the government for GH₵233,495 each, being their accrued monthly pension pay since January 2009.
The amount being claimed works out to GH₵13,735 per person per month, but interest accrued during the 85 months raises the amount to GH₵233,495 each.
With the suit filed at the Labour Division of the Accra High Court, the 40 former MPs are collectively demanding GH¢9,339,800 from the government.
The basis of the legal action by the 40 former MPs is the Chinnery-Hesse Presidential Emoluments Committee (PEC) which provides that parliamentarians who were 50 years and above and exited Parliament, having served two full terms, should be paid some sums of money as pension benefits.
Some notable names among the 40 former MPs who initiated the legal action are Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, Dr Kofi Konadu Apraku, Dr Kwame Ampofo, Mr Kwamina Bartels, Mr Freddie Blay, Mr Kenneth Dzirasah, Ms Christine Churcher, Mr Isaac E. Edumadze and Mr Nkrabea Effah-Darteh.
Joined to the suit as defendants are the Attorney-General (A-G) and the Minister of Finance.
Distress
The plaintiffs, in their statement of claim, averred that since 2011 they had been negotiating with the government, through the Ministry of Finance and the leadership of Parliament, for aspects of the Chinnery-Hesse Committee report in relation to their pensions to be paid, but the negotiations, they claimed, had proved futile.
“Several attempts, demands or requests made on the government to have these pension benefits paid to the plaintiffs have proved futile,” they said.
According to the plaintiffs, based on a letter dated June 25, 2015, the A-G directed the Ministry of Finance to make payments to them but the ministry had “refused, neglected or failed to pay the said money to the plaintiffs”.
The action of the ministry, the former MPs added, continued to cause them distress, as most of them remained unemployed because of old age and were, therefore, unable to sustain their families.
They said being advanced in years had also come with various medical conditions, the management of which required daily doses of expensive medication.
The former MPs said on November 24, 2015, a notice to institute civil action was served on the state, but the A-G, apart from a letter dated December 22, 2015 which acknowledged its receipt of the suit, had failed to respond.
The disgruntled former legislators claimed that the conduct of the government showed that unless compelled by the courts, it was not ready to pay the pensions duly owed them.
Find below the list of former MPs
1. David Apasera
2. Dr. Charles Brempong-Yeboah
3. Francis Aggrey Agbotese
4. Nii Adu Daku Mante
5. Kwame Adusa Okerchiri
6. Godfred Otchere
7. Moses Dani Baah
8. K. Brandford Adu
9. Victor Okuley Nortey
10. Yaw Barimah
11. Kwadwo Darko Adjei
12. Samuel Gyamfi Adu
13. Joseph Tsatsu Agbenu
14. Eugene Atta Agyapong
15. Abraham Osei Aidoo
16. Dr. Kwame Ampofo
17. Dr. Matthew Kwaku Antwi
18. Dr. Kofi Konadu Apraku
19. Yaw Mensah Asiedu
20. Angela Baiden-Amissah
21. Kwamena Bartels
22. Freddie W.A. Blay
23. Sampson Boafo
24. Chrisitine Churcher
25. Kenneth Dzirasah
26. Isaac E. Edumadze
27. Nkrabea Effah Dartey
28. Kwame Owusu Frimpong
29. Kitson Akomeng Kissi
30. Joseph Henry Mensah
31. Mrs Anna Nyamakye
32. Albert Kwaku Obbin
33. Yaw Osafo-Maafo
34. Francis Mensah Osafo
35. Akwasi Adjei Osei
36. K. Owusu Adjapong
37. K. Opoku Adusei
38. Quarm Sam
39. Alex Sofo Seidu
40. Alhassa Malik Yakubu
Source: Graphic.com.gh
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This is not fair. Please you are not being fair to the current president. Please what is this again ? you have taken you ex-Gratia .and what is that SSNIT for ? Please do not do that to incur the displeasure of we Ghanaians . Govt.will not going to you a penny Please what is that.
I have always known NPP leaders are more corrupt than NDC leaders. This is because, as ndc leaders steal clearly for all to see, NPP leaders steal with the pen, which is more serious, because such ttthhieves can easily use the court to get away. How can you come to power with the message that the country is broke and turn around and take the broke country to court to pay you huge sums of money. How wicked can one be.
These politicians think Ghanaians are fuulls and that Ghana belong to them. The Resources of the state belong to every Ghanaian, this time round we are not going to sit down for them to come and rape the coffers. Since 2009, you never went to court, but because your party is in government you think you can go to court and get this money. If nana addo will sit down for these greedyy ***barred word*** to rape the nation, then he doesn't deserve to be president. Some government workers are taking less than 500 Ghana, yet these politicians who were taken million a month as well as exgratia still want more. What kind of plain robbery is this?
i think it is time for the youth of this country to rise up and fight for their rights and future else these politicians will destroy our future. lets all rise and demonstrate against this attitude of Ghanaian politicians. when it comes to money issues you will not see any ndc or npp.they will collaborate and take the money and share. youth of Ghana i am telling you our politicians have nothing better to offer us and so lets rise and fight for our future.
i don't understand why the elite always want to steal from the state. By serving as an MP for four years, you take away huge sums at the end of the four years . Have they considered the nurse,teacher ,civil servant who works for 25 to 30 years and take home so little compared to their?. Don't they also have old age diseases to manage?. ***barred word*** purporting to Serve.
This is the problem with African politics. Why do we even go and queue in the sun to vote? My mother was a nurse for 32 years and I have to support her financially in her retirement. She never got any ex-gratia, no free fuel, no car loan etc. A politician comes to parliament and at the end of every four year cycle he gets millions of cedis as ex-gratia whether or not he loses his seat? So the Sam Georges and the Ablakwas are well off after 8 years than a teacher who has worked for 40 years? how is that fair? and at the on top of this you want pensions? Do these people even have a conscience? Why are blacks so selfish? Do we even care about our nation? You came to beg us to vote for you and you turn around to hold the nation to ransom? Is this democracy thing even good for Africa? Maybe the military was better?
Our honorable ladies and gentlemen should desist from anything that may degenerate into unwholesome debates. after all some of them are on the government payroll and that alone must be a consolation. What were they doing during the Mahama administration? This is not fair to Ghanaians at this tough times.
i'm sorry the comment i make
You are just corrupt like these politicians. Have they contributed anything like pension whiles in parliament? These politicians make provision for themselves just to live comfortably with their families and you have the audacity to write that senselessssssss comment.
THIS EDUCATED OLD FOLKS ARE JUST USING THEIR CONNECTIONS IN GOVERNMENT TO GO AND GET SOME CHEEP MONEY TO ENJOY AND GIVE TO THEIR GRAND CHILDREN. AS FOR ME, I KNOW WHAT THE POLITICIAN CAN DO WITH POWER SO I AM NOT SURPRISE AT ALL. OBVIOUSLY THE JUDGEMENT WILL GO IN THEIR FAVOR BECAUSE THIS IS THE CREATION OF SOME PERSONS IN GOVERNMENT. THIS IS WHAT THE POLITICIAN CAN DO.THE ONLY THING THEY CANNOT DO IS TO TURN MAN INTO WOMAN. EVEN IF THEY CAN MAKE LAWS TO TAKE PORTION OF THE SEA AS THEIR PROPERTY I DONT CARE. THE AFRICAN POLITICIAN IS A LAZY PERSON. BESIDE STEALING THEY CANT MAKE MONEY WITH THEIR BRAINS.