The Minister for Employment and Labour Relations, Abdul-Rashid Pelpuo, has blamed the previous administration for the ongoing salary delays affecting thousands of nurses, teachers, and junior doctors, stating that the situation is a result of poor recruitment practices and fiscal indiscipline under the erstwhile Akufo-Addo-Bawumia regime.
His comments come in response to recent street protests by frustrated health and education workers who say they have worked for up to 10 months without pay.
The Junior Doctors’ Association has also threatened to withdraw its services if the arrears are not cleared soon.
Dr. Pelpuo described the development as “unfair” but stressed that the problem was inherited.
“The situation is currently unfair, but it is a culmination of events that took place in the last regime before the current regime took over,” he said.
“People were engaged to work without due process. For you to work and be paid, you need clearance to show that there is money in the account and that your employment has been approved. That didn’t happen in this respect.”
According to the minister, the former government recruited over 12,000 people into the public sector after losing the 2024 elections, even though there was no financial provision to pay their salaries.
“Over 12,000 people were engaged at the time the last administration had lost the elections. Where did they think the money would have come from?” he questioned.
“There is a fiscal basket that contains everything, but it did not include any effort to pay these people.”
Dr. Pelpuo revealed that the three-month budget handed over to the Mahama administration also excluded provisions to cater for the unpaid workers, compounding the financial strain on the current government.
Despite the challenges, he assured that the government was committed to resolving the issue.
“We are taking it up very seriously, and I can assure the nurses, teachers, and junior doctors who are caught up in the process that we are going to respond to them before the end of the year,” he stated.
