The Supreme Court has ruled against 40 former Members of Parliament (MP) who were praying the Apex Court for an interpretation of the Chinery-Hesse Committee report that instituted a special pension scheme for lawmakers who had finished serving their term.
Among these former MPs are Mr J.H. Mensah and Isaac E. Edumadze, who had passed into glory years ago.
According to the seven-member panel presided over by Justice Jones Dotse, it was unconstitutional for the Chinery-Hesse Committee to provide a special pension scheme for Members of Parliament who had finished serving their terms.
David Apasera, a former Member of Parliament (MPs), sued the government for GH¢233,495 for each of the 40 former MPs. This amount had accrued since January 2009. Each MP was initially entitled to GH¢13,735, but the figure rose to GH¢233,495 due to an interest rate of 85 percent.
Background
The 40 former MPs collectively filed a law suit to demand a total of GH¢9,339,800 from the government. Their decision was based on the Chinery-Hesse Presidential Emoluments Committee (PEC), which provides that parliamentarians who were 50 years and above, and had exited Parliament after serving for two full terms, should be paid some monies as pension benefit. The joint suit was defended by the Attorney-General (A-G) and the Ministry of Finance.
The plaintiffs, in their statement of claim, averred that since 2011 they had been negotiating with the government through the Ministry of Finance and the leadership of Parliament for aspects of the Chinery-Hesse Committee report, in relation to their pensions to be paid, but the negotiations had proved futile.
Several attempts, demands, or requests made on the government to have these pension benefits paid to the plaintiffs have equally been fruitless. According to the plaintiffs, the A-G, in a letter dated June 25, 2015, directed the Ministry of Finance to make the payments to them, but the Ministry refused, neglected, or failed to pay the said monies to them.
The Finance Ministry’s refusal to follow the A-G’s direction and remit the former MPs pushed them to seek legal remedy.
According to them, the constant denial on the part of the Finance Ministry to pay them had caused some of them distress, as most of them remained unemployed because of old age, and were, therefore, unable to sustain their families.
It was their argument that being advanced in years had also come with various medical conditions, hence, required daily doses of expensive medication.
The former MPs said on November 24, 2015, a notice to institute civil action was served on the state, but the A-G, apart from a letter dated December 22, 2015, which acknowledged its receipt of the suit, had failed to respond.
The disgruntled former legislators claimed that the conduct of the government showed that unless compelled by the courts, it was not ready to pay the pensions duly owed
The 40 former MPs are:
1. David Apasera
2. Dr. Charles Brempong-Yeboah
3. Francis Aggrey Agbotese
4. Nii Adu Daku Mante
5. Kwame Adusa Okerchiri
6. Godfred Otchere
7. Moses Dani Baah
8. K. Brandford Adu
9. Victor Okuley Nortey
10. Yaw Barimah
11. Kwadwo Darko Adjei
12. Samuel Gyamfi Adu
13. Joseph Tsatsu Agbenu
14. Eugene Atta Agyapong
15. Abraham OseiAidoo
16. Dr. Kwame Ampofo
17. Dr. Matthew Kwaku Antwi
18. Dr. Kofi Konadu Apraku
19. Yaw Mensah Asiedu
20. Angela Baiden-Amissah
21. Kwamena Bartels
22. Freddie W.A. Blay
23. Sampson Boafo
24. Christine Churcher
25. Kenneth Dzirasah
26. Isaac E. Edumadze
27. Nkrabea Effah Dartey
28. Kwame Owusu Frimpong
29. Kitson Akomeng Kissi
30. Joseph Henry Mensah
31. Mrs Anna Nyamakye
32. Albert Kwaku Obbin
33. Yaw Osafo-Maafo
34. Francis Mensah Osafo
35. Akwasi Adjei Osei
36. K. Owusu Adjapong
37. K. Opoku Adusei
38. Quarm Sam
39. Alex Sofo Seidu
40. Alhassa Malik Yakubu
The post Supreme Court throws out 2 dead MPs appeared first on The Chronicle Online.
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