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The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Seth Terkper has insulated the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) from the delay in the payment of salaries of newly recruited public workers. The Finance Ministry and the CAGD have been criticised for their inability to pay some 91 medical doctors for the past 11 months.

However speaking on the floor of Parliament, Mr. Terkper said the CAGD is not responsible for the problem since “it takes 18 to 24 months for the personal data of a teacher or health worker to be imputed by the relevant MDAs before it gets to the financial clearing stage.”

The Minister was however quick to add that government will soon introduce a new software that will rectify the problem. “…We are setting up the HRMR system to interface with the payroll electronically, similar to what is being done now where statements are being checked electronically.” Controller’s defence

In a related development, the Director of Payroll at CAGD George Baah has also rejected claims that they are the cause of delays in the payment salaries of public sector workers. He instead blamed the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for the problem.

He explained that the MDAs fail to secure financial clearance for new employees before such persons are recruited. “Applying for financial clearance from the Ministry of Finance is a process on its own because it takes time. So when they don’t have the financial clearance the MDAs still go ahead and employ people,” Mr Baah said on Eyewitness News on Wednesday.