According to the Ministry of Information, several employees were given GHC150,000 during the COVID-19 lockdown in order to inspire them.
As per the Ministry, employees required some incentive due to the risks they had to take.
This comes after Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, the Auditor-General, expressed doubts about the rationale behind the payment in his COVID-19 transactions report covering the period from March 2020 to June 2022.
However, Mawuli Segbefia, the Ministry of Information’s Director of Finance and Monitoring, claimed the funds were intended to raise employee morale.
“Mr Chair, we were required to submit our implementation plan and budget to the Ministry of Health and the bank for approval, which we complied with. The plan contained all activities to be implemented plus all allowances due to officers who implemented them.
“So, yes, Mr Chairman the plan was submitted to the bank, and Ministry of Health and duly approved before implementation commenced. The allowances were part of the plan submitted to the Ministry of Health for approval,” the Director of Finance and Monitoring at the Ministry of Information stated.
