Pensions Up 50 Percent This Month

Pensioners will from the end of this month receive a 50 per cent increase in the pensions.
This follows the recent adjustment of salaries by the government. The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Controller and Accountant General’s Department, Moffat Akwei, confirmed these to the “Times” in Accra during an interview on the long delay in releasing the increment.
He confirmed that the Ministry of Finance had authorised the payment of the increment to be calculated and paid to the corresponding rank of an incumbent officer’s salary, using the salary on which the pensioner retired.
But this has not been possible, drawing persistent appeals from the pensioners with the latest one coming from Richard Akwei Brown, a retired Assistant Director of the Department of Social Welfare, who called at the “Times” head office in Accra last Thursday.
Moffat Akwei explained that the delay was due to some inconsistencies in the figures as some of them retired on levels while others were on ranges. So there was the need to really take time to make sure that all the discrepancies were removed to ensure a smooth operation in the system”.
Akwei told the “Times” that the arrears of the increments, which took effect from 1 October 2002, would be worked out and paid soonest. Commenting on the latest decision, a pensioner said it “was very long overdue as what we already were taking was woefully inadequate. “At least this will do us little good but still the bills are too high”, he stated.