State Attorneys withdraw services

State Attorneys of the Attorney-General's Department on Tuesday carried out their threat to withdraw their services to back their demand for payment of arrears of allowances due them since the beginning of the year.

Mr Augustines Obour, Acting Secretary of the Association of State Attorneys, told the Ghana News Agency that no State Attorney had gone to court throughout the country apart from Chiefs State Attorneys, who were administrators.

He said they would stay away from the courts until their demands were met.

Mr Obour said this was not a fight between the Attorneys and the Minister, but an entitlement to facilitate their work.

He said they resolved to withdraw their services because the authorities had failed to respond to persistent demands for the payment of the allowances.

The State Attorneys are demanding the shortfall in fuel, clothing and leave allowances.

Mr Obour said members of the Association had held several meetings with the authorities at the Ministry of Justice and had run out of patience, adding that they could not continue to suffer the effects of fuel price increases.

The Association, Mr Obour said, was not interested in strike actions. "We are prepared to work if the government pays all allowances due us even though the condition of service in the legal service is nothing good to write home about.

"We are interested in our allowances for now," he said, adding that the State Attorneys had been very patient over their demands.

The Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, Papa Owusu-Ankomah in a separate interview with the Ghana News Agency described the action as "unfortunate" since concerns of the Attorneys were being feverishly addressed by the Accountant-General's Department.

He said as professionals, they have the responsibility to set good examples adding this is a matter that would be resolved within the Attorney's General's Department.

"It was not deliberate that these monies have delayed but such things do happen and I believe they would bear with us."

On Friday, the Minister told the GNA that he met with the Attorneys on Tuesday and advised them to exercise restraint while the issue was being addressed.

"It is not in the best interest of the legal profession for lawyers of the A-G's Office to embark on strike action to back demands."

He noted that conditions of service at the AG's Department were not the best compared to those in private practice but these were being gradually improved.