CLOGSAG's demand for neutrality allowance has been met with strong opposition as Ghanaians wonder why government would consider paying an allowance of this kind.
This is the first time Ghanaians are hearing of "neutrality allowance"; this allowance is said to be a compensation to the Civil and Local Government Staff Association of Ghana (CLOGSAG) for their inability to engage in active politics nor pursue a political career.
The laws of Ghana do not permit a civil worker to engage in partisan politics, therefore, in order to make amends for the civil workers; the government held a meeting with their leaders and agreed on paying them what they describe as neutrality allowance.
Many Ghanaians have condemned the allowance, stressing it's a waste of money and others cautioning the government against setting a bad precedent in the country.
"We are setting a bad precedent with that neutrality allowance that may boomerang on us. Who even gave them authority to engage in this negotiation?", Dr. Benjamin Otchere-Ankrah, a Governance Lecturer at the Central University, shot down justifications for the payment of this neutrality allowance.
However, it has emerged that the neutrality allowance was spearheaded by some powerful hands in government.
It's been revealed that the person who led the negotiation with CLOGSAG and arrived at paying them the neutrality allowance is Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo-Maafo.
Mr. Yaw Osafo-Maafo, who is also a former Finance Minister, together with the Ministry of Finance led by its Deputy Minister, Abena Osei Asare, were the ones who accepted to pay CLOGSAG this allowance and this was disclosed in an audio recording of the Executive Secretary of CLOGSAG, Dr. Isaac Bampoe Addo played on Peace FM's morning show "Kokrokoo".
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