Akufo-Addo and his 'Dogs of War' swirl around pension cash

Suddenly, many Ghanaian public sector workers currently on strike are having second thoughts about the strike action initiated by their leaders.

The change of minds, the 'Daily Post' can report, is due to the growing strong suspicion among the workers that their leaders have sold out to NPP flagbearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, and are thus simply resisting government's move so as to hand over their Tier Two Pension money to him to fund his electioneering campaign in 2016.

This suspicion was heightened by the fact that all three lawyers who represented the labour leaders in a meeting with government on Tuesday are from the NPP flag-bearer's chambers.

Lawyers Akoto Ampaw, Godfred Dame and Kofi Bentil are from Akufo Addo's law chambers and represented the labour front in a meeting with Labour Minister, Hon. Haruna Iddrisu and officials of his Ministry on Tuesday. Akoto Ampaw and Godfred Odame were among Akufo-Addo's team of lawyers who represented him at the Supreme Court last year in his abortive attempt to become President of Ghana through a court's ruling.

Interestingly, among the Fund Managers the labour leaders have chosen to administer their tier two pension funds in one instance and act as custodians in another is Data Bank Financial Services.

Curiously, Data Bank is owned by Ken Ofori-Atta, a cousin of Mr. Akufo-Addo. He is arguably the biggest financier of the twice-defeated NPP flag-bearer's electioneering campaigns especially in the 2012 polls. Insiders at Data Bank say the company is experiencing financial constraints, the reason why it recently had its offices closed down by the Ghana Revenue Authority for owing Ghc1.6million in taxes.

With a whopping Ghc2 billion (Twenty billion old cedis) sitting in the Bank of Ghana's vault being money accruing from workers deduction of Tier Two of their person funds from 2010 to date, the swirling of people linked to Akufo-Addo, from his lawyers to Data Bank has seen many a Ghanaian worker developing butterflies in the stomach.

By 2016, it is estimated that the fund may accrue over Ghc6billion (GH¢60billion) which would be sweet money for Akufo-Addo to fund his Presidential campaign.

The track record of Data Bank in handling workers' pension monies is already one that borders on criminality, an extra reason why their acting as Fund Managers of Hedge Master Trust Occupational Pension Scheme set up by Civil and Local Government Staff Association, Ghana (CLOGSAG) and custodians of Judicial Service Occupational Pension Scheme set up by Judicial Service Staff Association of Ghana is cold comfort for many workers .

Databank, together with others, in 1998 managed to lay hands on $2.44million of workers' pension money after convincing SSNIT that the money will be administered by a company they had set up, Obotan Developers Ltd, to put up upscale residential apartments for top class executives and their families in Accra along Independence Avenue where the property of the Mormons is currently situated.

It turned out that the whole deal was a scam. Obotan Developers Ltd did not exist. No houses were built with the money Databank and co got from SSNIT. In essence, they simply 'chopped' $2.44million of workers' pension money. And, having, strangely, not be prosecuted, they seek workers pension money once more.

The swirling of Akufo Addo's 'Dogs of War' around the pension money is really giving many workers the jitters especially with the NPP flag-bearer known to be so desperate for funds to finance the 2016 elections. They are indeed already beginning to have nightmares in which they see themselves waking up some years on when they have retired only to find that their pension monies have been 'Obotanlised'.

Gradually, many workers, after hastily following their leaders to go on strike, are silently praying government would not yield to the demands of their leaders and leave their pensions in the hands on private enterprise alone.