The Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Sulemana Braimah, has accused the Akufo-Addo administration of financial exploitation of national service personnel.
Speaking on Joy FM’s PM Express on Wednesday, February 12, he alleged that schemes were devised to systematically deduct money from service personnel under the guise of administrative initiatives.
“There were schemes that were developed to basically fleece service personnel of the little that was coming to them,” Mr. Braimah stated.
He specifically mentioned a scheme called “marketplaces,” which he claimed was used as a tool to unfairly deduct money from personnel, many of whom never agreed to any purchases or transactions.
“People who never purchased anything had their monies deducted. It was simply a way to take money from them under false pretences,” he added.
Beyond these alleged schemes, Mr. Braimah criticized the previous administration for failing to ensure an efficient system for young graduates.
“I think that we just need leadership that is truly committed to ensuring that the system works. The previous administration, I don’t think, had that commitment,” he said.
He also highlighted abandoned projects that had consumed public funds without benefiting intended recipients.
“There are a number of projects that have been abandoned after monies have been spent. That is part of the problem,” he noted.
Mr. Braimah further questioned the payment system for service personnel, raising concerns about possible manipulations within the Ghana Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS).
“I think we need to look into the payment system because, as far as I know, payments were being made through GIFMIS. So to what extent was the GIFMIS system bypassed or sometimes outwitted? These are critical questions we need answers to,” he asserted.
His comments add to calls for accountability in the management of the National Service Scheme, suggesting that the system meant to support young graduates was instead exploited for financial gain.
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