The cash-strapped Akufo-Addo government, has found a convenient way of reducing his expenditure by targeting the youth not his elephant size government with over 120 ministers, special assistants, spokesmen, a huge courtier of family and friends.
In this regard, the management of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) has indicated that the contracts of beneficiaries of its Community Protection Assistants (CPAs) Module and School Support Module, will be terminated by the close of this month, August.
The YEA management has said that the beneficiaries’ service of engagement with the Agency officially ends on 31st August 2022 and are to “vacate their post by the end of the month”. It warned that “Beneficiaries are to take notice that they will cease receiving their monthly payment after the end of this month”.
It comes as the government is also shutting down the Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) sending them home with nothing despite being heavily indebted to the beneficiaries for over 10 months.
It is believed the government’s financial difficulty with money which has made it unable to release funds for the Free SHS programme, pay nursing and teacher trainees their allowances is to blame for the decision.
But it is unclear why the School Support Module which has put unemployed youth in the classrooms and schools under trees in remote area across the country where trained are unwilling to go, is being pulled down although the state has allotted portions of the talk tax from the telecommunication companies to fund the programme for years now.
That money has oftentimes landed on the desk of management for many unplanned expenditures and naked waste and abuse.
Interestingly, some of the modules, including the waste management module are known to have heavily bloated beneficiaries being paid by the state.
A notice sent out on August 16, 2022, to all beneficiaries with heading End of contract notice – Community Protection Assistants and School Support Module had stated that “Management of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) wishes to inform all Community Protection Assistant (CPA) Module Beneficiaries and that of the School Support Module, that their service of engagement with the Agency officially ends this month, August 31, 2022”.
The YEA, which has seen Kofi Baah Agyepong, taken over from Justine Kodua Frimpong, went on to say “Beneficiaries are to take notice that they will cease receiving their monthly payment after the end of this month”.
Management further mentioned “however, wishes to state that it is evaluating all the programmes and will advertise new programmes that will be rolled out in the ensuing months.
“All Beneficiaries are by this notice advised to vacate their post by the end of the month”, adding “we count on the understanding and cooperation of Beneficiaries and all stakeholders in this regard”.
The Head of Corporate Affairs at YEA, has since been explaining the rationale behind the decision.
Speaking to Citi News, Emmanuel Kwasi Afriyie, he noted that the period of engagement, which is two years, has elapsed hence the decision.
Mr Afriyie, further added that the management of the agency is evaluating all programmes and would advertise new ones that would be rolled out in the ensuing months.
“Their service of engagement is expected to end by the end of 31st of this month, and we are expecting that by the end of this month they will vacate their post, so we will pay all beneficiaries up to the end of this month.”
“If you look at any of the engagement letters we gave to them two years ago, and if you look at the agency’s Act, the Act says we should engage the beneficiary for two years. If after two years we have to work with them again, then there has to be new arrangements to re-engage them all together again.”
“The long and short of it all is that their two years have officially ended, as was written in their letters of engagement. We are evaluating the current programmes that we run and if the governing board approves for the programme to run again which I think will be done in the next few weeks or months we will open up the portal again for new applications,” he affirmed.
More to come!
