Dr. Bawumia in a handshake with Kwasi Kwaning-Bosompem
Government workers without a Ghana/ECOWAS Citizens Card would have their salaries frozen starting March 2024.
This follows the launch of a software solution which has integrated the databases of the Mechanised Payroll System of the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) and the National Identification Authority (NIA) with the real-time biometric validation for verification of salaries of government workers.
The measure is to help eliminate ‘ghost names’ from the government payroll and ensure only legitimate government employees are paid.
It will also ensure transparency, efficiency and accountability of the utilisation of public funds.
Speaking at the launch in Accra yesterday, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia described the introduction of the new system as historic and a major landmark event.
The initiative was championed by the Office of the Vice President as part of the government’s digitalisation agenda, in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance, the Controller and Accountant General’s Department, and the National Identification Authority.
Dr. Bawumia was of the firm belief that the new payroll system would help remove non-existent workers on the government payroll, popularly known as the ‘ghost names’ and curb corruption in payroll management.
He cited an instance at the National Service Secretariat in 2022 where 14,027 ‘ghost names’ were discovered on the payroll and expunged, thus, saving the nation GH¢120 million.
The Vice President further noted that since the NIA had the biometric data of every Ghanaian, it would enable the system to verify the biometric details of every new recruit and check payroll fraud.
On his part, the Controller and Accountant-General, Kwasi Kwaning-Bosompem, said the initiative would promote transparency, efficiency, accountability of government payroll system and ensure judicious use of public funds.
He, therefore, urged public sector workers and CAP 30 pensioners to acquire the Ghana Card to avoid any inconveniences.
Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, lauded the efforts of the staff of the CAGD and NIA, believing that the system would save the public purse and payroll irregularities.
He said it would also save the government the resources it used in undertaking payroll audits.
The groundbreaking initiative is designed to create an unbreakable bond between the worker’s identity and their presence on the payroll, with periodic validations undertaken to make the system even more robust, according to the Controller and Accountant General, Mr. Kwasi Kwaning Bosompem.
“The system will ensure real-time validation and verification of new and old employees, improve data accuracy for decision making, enhance transparency and accountability, save Government the huge costs of regular Payroll Audits across the country since the data can be audited anytime at source, and will operate in decentralised biometric verification centres, saving users the cost of travelling to Accra for validation and verification,” he explained.
By Charles Takyi-Boadu, Presidential Correspondent