With effect from August 2017, Heads of Departments (HODs) and their staff, who have not been validated would have their salaries stopped, the Controller and Accountant-General Department (CAGD) has warned.

The Department said it will apply sanctions rigidly to defaulting employers, warning it will also stop the salaries of public sector employees “who are declared unknown but not missing, meaning unverified.”

The measures, according to the Department, are part of efforts to sanitize the Electronic Salary Payment Voucher (E-SPV) system and make it more efficient.

According to the CAGD, between April and July, this year, the total number of employees whose salaries were due for suspension stood at 78,724.

Out of the number, 58,633 employees were not validated by their HODs while those declared unknown, but not missing were 20,091.

The Controller and Accountant-General, Mr Eugene Ofosuhene, at a meeting with stakeholders in Accra yesterday, said his outfit would compel all Personnel Processing Sections (PPS) in the Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to “as a matter of urgency update all employees’ data in real time.”

“The Department will provide the respective data to all PPSs and expect that all updates are done before the final payroll run,” he disclosed.

He tasked all heads of MDAs to cooperate fully with the Department “so that all issues especially posting and transfer, brought up by validators are addressed within the same month”.

Mr Ofosuhene disclosed that the CAGD will undertake re-orientation of all stakeholders on the E-SPV system in the last quarter of 2017.

On some of the challenges inhibiting the smooth implementation of the system, MrOfosuhene faulted some HODs on their reluctance to validate payment vouchers for their staff.

“We have noted that with concern the unfortunate practice of some HODs using the system to withhold the salaries of their employees for no genuine reasons,” he stated.

He described as unacceptable circumstances where HODs relegate their responsibilities in respect of the validation to unauthorised staff to handle, saying “it defeats the very purpose of the E-SPV and threatens its credibility.