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The former Auditor-General, Edward Dua Agyemang, yesterday floored the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General when an Accra Fast Track High Court Criminal Division declared that he was entitled to be paid gratuity and pension in accordance with the recommendations of the reports on Reviews and Privileges of the Chinery Hesse Report. The court presided over by Justice Utter Peter Dery also ordered the state to pay a monthly pension equivalent to his salary as adjusted from to time in accordance with the salary of the Auditor-General at post which is equivalent to that of a Justice of the Court of Appeal. This was after the plaintiff Mr. Dua Agyemang dragged the state to court over the refusal of the government to pay him his retirement benefits in accordance with Article 71(1) of the Constitution. The Deputy Chief of Staff, Dr. Valerie Sawyer, had informed the plaintiff that he was not entitled to his benefits because he was �a political appointee and not a career staff of the Audit Service or of any other service� and was therefore not qualified for any pension. Justice Dery also said the former Auditor-General was entitled to one free chauffeur driven vehicle with associated expenses born by the state and a review of the conditions of pension payable to a former holder of the position of Auditor-General as will be determined by the report of any Presidential Committee on Emoluments. In addition, the trial judge said the plaintiff should be paid gratuity consisting of three months� salary for every year of service as paid to his predecessor and interest on the prevailing bank rate and consequently awarded costs of GH�10,000 against the state. However the trial judge refused an order for the provision of free medical and dental facilities to the plaintiff and his wife. In his amended statement of claim, the plaintiff said he was the Deputy Auditor-General from of Ghana from July 1, 1987, to 1989 till he was made the substantive Auditor-General on January 30, 2003, in a letter signed by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning. He said the terms and conditions of his appointment letter included �gratuity and pension as may be determined by the President acting in accordance with the advice of the Council of State�. According to him, the provision of his gratuity and pension was in fulfilment of a constitutional obligation owed him by the Republic as he was appointed under Article (70) 1 of the Constitution. In addition, he noted that before retiring from the Audit-Service on May 19, 2012, he made various requests for the payment of his gratuity till he was informed he was not entitled to it. Mr. Dua Agyemang observed that the position of Auditor-General was not political since the Audit Service formed part of the Public Services of Ghana and said his former position was a public office. Furthermore, he said in terms of salaries and allowances, the position in the Judicial Service Category to which his former position as Auditor-General had relativity to, was that of the Justice of the Court of Appeal. The plaintiff said he had �been subjected to undue hardship as a result of the state�s persistent refusal to pay him� what was due him and said he was thus entitled to be paid damages. Godfred Yeboah-Dame was there for the plaintiff while the state was represented by Jemila Zakaria.