The National Service Authority (NSA) has denied authorising a GH¢60 deduction from the allowances of national service personnel, saying the charge was introduced by the leadership of the National Service Personnel Association (NASPA).
Deputy Director of the NSA, Lieutenant Colonel Moses Kpeungu, said the deduction was a decision taken independently by NASPA executives for capacity building purposes and was not initiated by the Authority.
He made the clarification on JoyNews Today on Tuesday, July 21, following concerns raised by some national service personnel over deductions from their monthly allowances.
Some personnel have complained that deductions, including charges for insurance and other funds, were made without proper communication or their consent.
They argue that their monthly allowance of GH¢715 is already inadequate to cover transportation, feeding and other essential expenses, and that additional deductions have increased their financial burden.
The affected personnel have called for transparency from the NSA and clarity on who approved the deductions.
Responding to the concerns, Lieutenant Colonel Kpeungu explained that the NSA and NASPA are separate entities, with NASPA having its own elected executives who make decisions on behalf of the association.
“NASPA is an association of national service personnel. They have executives. The decisions of NASPA are not the decisions of the National Service Authority,” he said.
He explained that NSA officials are not part of NASPA’s executive meetings and are only informed after decisions have been taken by the association.
“The decisions are taken at that level, and then we are informed of the deduction process. We were informed that they had a meeting and agreed that GH¢60 would be deducted,” he said.
Lieutenant Colonel Kpeungu stressed that the GH¢60 charge was specifically for capacity building and was approved by NASPA.
“It is not a decision of the National Service Authority. It is a decision of the National Service Association,” he added.
He, however, confirmed that deductions had been made from some allowances but said he could only speak specifically about the GH¢60 capacity-building fee at the moment.
On concerns about insurance deductions, he said national service personnel who voluntarily subscribe to insurance policies are responsible for paying the required premiums.
“The Authority is not responsible for insuring national service personnel. So if you, as an individual, decide to take up an insurance policy, the deduction would have to go through,” he explained.
The NSA Deputy Director said any deductions found to have been made without authorisation would be investigated and corrected.
He cited a recent case involving a national service person in the Ashanti Region who was wrongly deducted an amount from her allowance, which was later reversed after the complaint was reported.
“Some of these things happen. But once they come, we will take time to remedy them and make sure they do not happen again,” he said.
The NSA has since urged national service personnel who suspect irregular deductions from their allowances to report the matter to the Authority for verification and resolution.
