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Several owners of companies and business entities are struggling to pay their workers and also keep their organizations afloat due to failure by the government to pay them for services rendered from deductions effected from salaries of government workers through the Third Party Reference System.
The Controller and Accountant General’s Department, introduced the Third Party Deductions called the Third Party Reference System (TPRS) as a way of preventing fraudulent deductions from teachers’ salaries by teacher unions, insurance companies, Hire Purchase Companies, Credit Unions as well as colleagues of the teachers themselves.
However, companies and institutions which have rendered services to some government organizations and workers through high purchase payments and the deductions made from the salaries of the workers by the Controller General’s Department are in tears because they have not been paid for over three months because the government says it has no money even though controller has duly deducted such moneys.
This worrying development has sent tongues wagging especially as the deductions have been effected but individual companies that are supposed to take custody of these moneys have not received them.
These deductions, this paper gathered are in arrears for about three (3) months and is putting a strain on families and dependents especially as the Controller & Accountant General’s is silent over the matter and no explanation also offered by the authorities notably the finance ministry who till date remain mum.
Employees of Government of Ghana (GOG) through the Third Party Reference System introduced by the Controller and Accountant General’s Department are expected to benefit from the system as it prevents Double deductions especially from teachers’ salaries who belong to associations and other unions.
Again the system seeks to eliminate the automatic membership of any teacher union and prevents colleague teachers who steal the pay slips of others to take loans from doing so under this system.
It also ensures that teachers who do not see any good in all the association in Ghana Education Service can choose to remain alone without dues deducted from their salaries for any association.
The welfare which has been made compulsory at the District and Regional level through the system cannot be allowed on this electronic platform and again Leaders of association who connive with workers at Controller and Accountant General’s Department to make random deductions for such association when the teachers who are being deducted have not filled any form to join the association cannot take place under this system.