Finance Minister faces court for non-payment of ex-workers

The Minister of Finance, Yaw Osafo Maafo and the Executive Secretary of the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC), Ben Poku-Adjei, were expected to appear before a Tema High Court today (Thursday) for failing to pay a total sum of ?25.225m to 1,286 ex-workers of the State Construction Company.

This follows the filing of an Ex-Parte motion by the Solicitor of the ex-workers, E.K. Jones-Mensah on 12 November 2002. The monies owed the workers were part of judgement debt which stood at ?18.01bn as at 20 March 2001, ruled by the same court.

According to an affidavit in support of the motion, it was the Attorney General (AG) who wrote to the solicitor proposing that the judgement debt be paid in two instalments. The first instalment of ?6,003,587 was to be paid in July 2002 and the balance effected before 10 October 2002.

Consequently, the AG wrote to the Minister of Finance, advising payment of the debt in accordance with due process of law. “Considering the possible saving by the state of the difference between the amount of eighteen billion, ten million, seven hundred sixty-three thousand, one hundred and eighty-nine cedis, eight pesewas (?18,010,763,199.08) and what could also be due them as interest (on the stated sum) from January 2002, I strongly recommend you kindly authorise the initial payment of ?6,003,587,729.69)”.

This was after the plaintiff had agreed to a concession to the AG to forgo all interest accruing on the judgement. The plaintiff again stated that when they called on Benson Poku-Adjei, who had been cited as first Respondent to pay up, he “rudely drove us away” with indifference to the AG.

In view of these development, the plaintiff argued that the concession had elapsed and hence the total judgement debt now stands at 25.225bn as at 1 November 2002. The affidavit further claimed that the plaintiff wrote to the first Respondent as far back as 28 August 2002 to pay the debt but he ignored the letter with contempt.”

“We pray this honourable court for an Order for due process of summons to show to issue against Osafo Maafo, Minister of Finance and Ben Poku-Adjei cited as 1st and 2nd Respondents herein to show cause why each should not be committed to prison for default in payment of a lawful judgement debt,” the affidavit concluded.

The ex-workers were retrenched when the SCC was divested through the DIC in January 1998 and paid a lump sum of 18 month’s salary as severance award. But, the workers were aggrieved and felt cheated and sued the AG for a review of their compensation in lieu of the Labout Decree 1967 (NLCD 157) Section 34 and as amended on 4 March 1969 (NLCD 342).