CLOGSAG calls on PAC to probe ‘ghost names’

The Civil and Local Government Staff Association (CLOGSAG) has called on the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament (PAC) to carry out an investigation into the nature of consultancies on the government payroll.

Mr Isaac Bampoe Addo, the Executive Secretary of CLOGSAG at a news conference organised in Accra said: “CLOGSAG had observed with keen concern matters arising out of the sudden appearance of ‘ghost names’ on the payroll of public services numbering over 26,000.

“We call on PAC to assess the output of these consultancies, whether they have been beneficial to the state because these Public Sector Payroll game is milking the nation,’’ he said.

Mr Addo observed that the Electronic Salary Payment Voucher (ESPV) introduced in 2014 at the initial stage test run was successful and was extended to all cost centres on government payroll.

He said one of the controls prior to the preparation of vouchers for various cost centres for a particular month was the validation of the names on the pay voucher by the Head of Department and the Human Resource Manager.

“What is intriguing about the implementation of the ESPV is the never-ending control of the public service data and information.

“It has been the practice since IPPD one in the 1990 to IPPD three initiated in and terminated in 2016 that the consultant’s software is installed on servers of the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) and these servers are housed at the CAGD. 

“However, we stand to be corrected, the CAGD server on EPSV has been placed at the services of the company running the EPSV and housed at the company’s premises”, he said.

He queried that “For how long would the contract of engagement be such that after almost three years, the private company has not been able to train local staff to handle such data in the premises of CAGD, What is the nature of the contract that makes a private company host data on public servants.

“If the ESPV was to clean the pay roll how come over 26,000 are declared as ghost in April 2017? Can we say the ESPV has failed to deliver on its objective and therefore should be abrogated? And can the ghost names syndrome be a ploy to lure the authorities to think or procuring additional software for payroll?”

He said per the introduction of the software for IPPD two for the running of the Government Payroll, it generated a myriad of problems and due to these problems IPPD three was introduced.

He explained that the software was able to handle successfully the staff of the Ghana Education Service which formed about 70 per cent of the total payroll of the Ghana Government.

He said: “the system run the payroll from 2012 to 2016 smoothly and successfully without any problems. Under mysterious circumstances the contract with the Managers of IPPD three was abrogated.

“The linkage of Public Sector System with SSNIT Biometric Data needs further explanation. The Government has set up an office at the Ministry of Finance that updates biometric data for those on government pay roll. Is this office deficient in its output? 

“We have raised these issues to draw attention to the Public Sector Payroll Games that is milking the nation”, he said.  

Source: GNA