The Executive Director of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, has once again questioned the essence of the neutrality allowance as demanded by the Civil and Local Government Staff Association of Ghana’s (CLOGSAG).
Mr. Cudjoe believes the Association’s demand for neutrality allowance is at variance with the Civil Service’s code of ethics.
“Conditions are dire for everybody but to discuss neutrality and give it a name and an allowance is quite frankly insulting to the whole principles of undergirding the Civil Service.”
CLOGSAG members laid down their tools on Thursday April 21, 2022, following the inability of government to pay the allowance as agreed upon in January this year.
The neutrality allowance is to ensure that civil and local government workers do not engage in partisanship while conducting their affairs at their duty posts.
It is paid to them to ensure that they discharge their duties professionally without getting involved in partisan activities.
While Mr. Franklin feels CLOGSAG’s demands for better conditions may be justified, he does not think neutrality allowance is appropriate.
“I think that the terminology they gave that allowance is the problem because we have said time without number that the Civil Service is undergirded by three principles. The principle of anonymity, permanency, and neutrality, so to take up each of these principles and negotiate sounds quite like repeating itself. I do not think it is right,” he said on Eyewitness News.
Previously, Mr. Franklin Cudjoe had called for the immediate abolishment of the neutrality allowance paid to civil service workers.
According to him, the Constitution mandates civil servants to steer clear from partisan politics; hence, there is no legitimate basis for the institution of that scheme. Read Also>>> CLOGSAG STRIKE: NEUTRALITY ALLOWANCE IS ILLEGAL, ABOLISH IT – FRANKLIN CUDJOE.
In a related story, Labour Analyst, Austin Gamey, is proposing a review of the Neutrality Allowance being demanded by some public sector workers.
He makes the point that, although civil servants deserve some more financial rewards to improve service conditions, the current form of the Neutrality Allowance they are crying over will rather make them worse off.
Read Also>>> NEUTRALITY ALLOWANCE NOT THE BEST WAY TO GO; IT MUST BE REVIEWED – AUSTIN GAMEY
