Dr. Jeremy Owusu Afrifa
PHARM D House Officers of 2022 have made a passionate appeal to the government to, as a matter of urgency, pay all existing allowances owed them, saying it is no more a financial issue but an issue of “human dignity.”
Pharm D house officers are Doctor of Pharmacy graduates who have written and passed the Ghana Pharmacy Professional and Qualifying examinations, and have been duly inducted as pharmacists after six years of rigorous education.
They are required to undergo a mandatory housemanship following the completion of their education – crucial phase in their professional development.
“However, after successfully completing the phase (housemanship), the allowances that are rightfully ours have not been paid,” said Dr. Jeremy Owusu Afrifa, leader of the Pharm D 2022 Year Group at a press briefing in Accra on Tuesday.
“For clarity, these allowances serve as our legal remuneration for services, akin to a salary. This delay has stretched for almost two years after relentless pursuits since 2022,” he said.
They are, therefore, calling for the immediate disbursement of all outstanding allowances due them.
According to Dr. Afrifa, the pursuit of their financial clearance has been long overdue, and appeals have been made to the Ministry of Health to immediately resolve all outstanding issues with the Ministry of Finance, to initiate the release of funds owed them, insisting that “We have fulfilled our duties and we have earned this compensation.”
The group also advocated for the implementation of strategic measures to prevent future delays, saying, “on the back of a similar incident with our immediate predecessors, we least expected that we revisit this unfortunate chapter again.”
They called on relevant authorities to establish a “transparent and efficient system” that ensures timely disbursement of allowances to future Pharm D officers.
BY Nii Adjei Mensahfio