Lawyers for former Legal Counsel to the former President Akufo-Addo, Kow Essuman, have formally written to the Finance Minister chasing him for his outstanding ex-gratia arrears and terminal benefits following the expiration of his tenure in January 2025.
On September 8, 2026, in a letter addressed to the Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, lawyers for Kow Essuman detailed that he appointed Legal Counsel to then-President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in January 2021 and later appointed acting Secretary to the President in October 2024, in addition to his duties as legal counsel serving until January 7, 2025, when the former President’s tenure ended.
According to the lawyers, their client’s appointment entitled him to terminal benefits including “four (4) months’ consolidated salary for every completed year of service or part thereof, an installation grant equivalent to one month’s salary, and a resettlement grant equivalent to one month’s salary for each year or fraction thereof served”.
The lawyers further argued that the benefits, together with outstanding salary arrears, became due to their client at the end of his tenure.
They also cited Section 2(c) of the Presidential (Transition) Act, 2012 (Act 845), which requires the Transition Team to ensure that salaries, allowances and retiring benefits due to specified public office holders are paid “without undue delay.”
Kow Essuman lawyers further claimed that while the Speaker and Members of Parliament, former Ministers and Deputy Ministers, MMDCEs and members of the Council of State had received their respective arrears and terminal benefits, their client and other former Presidential Staffers remained unpaid.
The lawyer stated, “Where persons who served in comparable public offices during the same period have received their applicable benefits, the continued withholding of our client’s entitlement is arbitrary, discriminatory, unfair and unlawful”.
According to the lawyers, Kow Essuman had made several representations over the matter without success.
They are further demanding that the Ministry of Finance pay the outstanding amount, together with interest from January 7, 2025, at the prevailing commercial bank rate.
The lawyers also gave the Ministry until Friday, September 11, 2026, to settle the outstanding principal and interest in full, warning that failure to meet the deadline would result in their client commencing legal proceedings against the State.
In other news, some months ago, Kow Essuman, alleged that the John Mahama-led NDC government is going through calculated lengths to keep Ghanaians in the dark.
According to Kow Essuman, the Mahama government’s transparency has not only been merely neglected but has actively resisted it.
He cited an RTI request filed by a citizen who is seeking a disclosure of non-performing loans written off by commercial banks, totalling GHS 1.39 billion.
He disclosed that the BoG requested the citizen’s identification, which was duly provided. Then it simply refused to release the information.
He further alleged that the citizen filed an application at the High Court to compel disclosure, which led to the BoG producing a letter, purportedly dated 24 April 2026, refusing the request on grounds that the information is “exempt.” No explanation. No legal basis offered.
Kow Essuman added that this is not an isolated incident; according to him, he has witnessed firsthand this government trying to keep Ghanaians in the dark when it comes to transparency.
In a post shared on X, Kow Essuman wrote, “In January this year, a citizen filed an RTI request with the Bank of Ghana, seeking disclosure of non-performing loans written off by commercial banks, totalling GHS 1.39 billion. The Bank initially asked for the citizen’s identification, which was duly provided. Then it simply refused to release the information.
On 28 April 2026, the citizen did what the Constitution entitles him to do; he filed an application at the High Court to compel disclosure.
Then something interesting happened.
Today, the Bank of Ghana produced a letter, purportedly dated 24 April 2026, refusing the request on grounds that the information is “exempt.” No explanation. No legal basis offered. Nothing.
I say purportedly dated 24 April because the dispatch stamp tells a different story: the letter was posted on 7 May 2026; nine days after the court application was filed. Draw your own conclusions about the timing.
This is not an isolated incident. I have seen, firsthand, this government and its appointees go to deliberate, calculated lengths to keep the public in the dark. Transparency is not merely neglected by this government; it is actively resisted.
GHS 1.39 billion in written-off loans. Public money. Public interest. And a government that would rather litigate than simply answer the question.
That should tell you everything. Accountability is a strange concept to this government”.
@ghnow_ The deadly accident allegedly happened on the Accra-Kumasi road.
♬ original sound – GHnow
@ghnow_ Alleged leaked audio of Nana B condemning Bawumia, endorsing Ken Agyapong #GHNow #fyp ♬ EpicSymphony – mosn
