Lawyers for the former Legal Counsel to the President, Kow Abaka Essuman, have formally demanded payment of his outstanding salary arrears and terminal benefits following the end of his tenure in January 2025. In a letter dated September 8, 2026, to the Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, they explained that Mr Essuman was appointed Legal Counsel to then-President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in January 2021 and later took on the additional role of acting Secretary to the President in October 2024, serving in both capacities until January 7, 2025, when the former President’s tenure ended. According to the lawyers, his appointment entitled him to terminal benefits including four 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, all of which, together with the salary arrears, became due at the end of his service.
The lawyers further relied on 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. They argued 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, Mr Essuman and other former Presidential Staffers remained unpaid. “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,” the lawyers stated.
They said Mr. Essuman had made several representations over the matter without success and were therefore 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 have given the Ministry until Friday, September 11, 2026, to settle the outstanding principal and interest in full.They warned that failure to meet the deadline would result in their client commencing legal proceedings against the State to recover the amount, interest and costs, although Mr Essuman remains willing to resolve the matter without litigation.
