Economist and political risk analyst Dr. Theo Acheampong has called for a more nuanced and targeted approach in addressing the dismissal of public sector employees hired after December 7, 2024.
Speaking on Newsfile on Saturday, February 22, 2025, he emphasized the need for a comprehensive audit of the appointments before making any blanket decisions, adding that due process must be verified to distinguish legitimate hires from irregular ones.
“So I think what ought to be done, for me, is a more nuanced and targeted approach. The whole mass approach perhaps doesn’t work. We need an audit of all these appointments. I would even extend it to two months before the election, not just after December 7,” he said.
“I also think that in the context of that audit, we need to be very sure that every one of those people who have been employed went through due process—financial clearance, authorization, all of those things,” he added.
Dr. Acheampong acknowledged that Ghana’s public payroll is under strain, particularly in the context of the ongoing IMF program, where wages and salaries remain one of the biggest expenditure items after debt servicing.
“Nobody denies that we need more doctors, teachers, and civil servants. But they also have to go through a proper process in terms of appointment. In the context of an IMF program, after servicing debt, the next biggest expenditure item is wages and salaries. You would have to do something in terms of trimming, but also ensuring efficiency savings,” he explained.
He noted that governments in power often rush to regularize certain appointments before leaving office, which ultimately adds pressure on public finances.
“After December 7, it often looks like an outgoing government is in a rush to regularize appointments that should have been done much earlier. Suddenly, there’s a panic to ensure these people have contracts, and all these decisions cascade into payroll challenges,” he observed.
Dr. Acheampong cited instances where teachers were affected by the mass dismissals, even though their recruitment processes began months before the election but were delayed due to administrative bottlenecks.
He advised that the audit should have clear timelines, ensuring that those who legitimately went through due process are reinstated, while those who did not are removed.
“Ultimately, some people would be re-employed, and some would not,” he concluded.