Economic hardship sends 14 ex-rail workers to early grave

Fourteen out of 674 ex-workers of Ghana Railway Company (GRC) who were retrenched on October 1, 2006 have since passed away as a result of economic hardships.

According to the surviving workers, only half of their severance pay had been given them and those who could not stand the economic hardships, the stress and mental torture of their inability to provide for their households had to succumb to death.

"We cannot give out upkeep money to our wives, our children and wards who have gained admission to the universities and polytechnics are still at home, we cannot pay our bills; and unfortunately those who could not stand hardships have given up the ghost," one of the workers told Public Agenda.

They were able to provide at least 10 names on the spot and promised to get to this paper with the other names. The late workers were Benjamin Turkson, John Hackman, P.E. Larbi, John Aidoo and I.K. Nyame. Others were Ato Duncan, Issaka Braimah, Robert Oboh, Comfort Seidu and Kwakye.

Seventy-nine of the workers selected from all the GRC branches throughout the country were in Accra last week for a decisive meeting with the Minister for Harbours and Railways, Prof. Christopher Ameyaw Ekumfi to collect their cheque for the remaining amount. They did not meet him as the Minister's Special Assistant informed them that his boss had traveled to Israel and is expected to be back on Wednesday.

They said the meeting was originally scheduled for Thursday of the previous week but was postponed to last Monday at the instance of the Minister and therefore were surprised to be told that the Minister had traveled to Israel.

Mr. John Agiligo, Acting National Chairman of the Retired Railway Workers Group, declared, "the lies have to end and without the money we are not leaving the Ministry. The war has started and there is no turning back."

True to their word they did not go back to their destinations, last Monday night they slept at the Ministry's premises, many of them in their bus, against Tuesday Morning when they were met by the Deputy Minister, Ms. Sophia Honer-Sam, who pleaded with them to go back and allow only the leadership to return on Friday by the time the substantive Minister would have returned for the outstanding issues to be ironed out.

Mr. Emmanuel Komla Ghansah, an executive member of the immediate past leadership of the Takoradi branch of the Railway Workers Union, explained that on the first of October 2006, all those aged between 55 to 60 years were served with retrenchment letters.

He said initially all workers were paid a quarter of the amounts due them and in November of the same year the other quarter was added, totaling half. "As of this day, 12 to 13 months down the line, not a dime has been added."

He disclosed that last Monday's visit was the seventh visit to the Ministry of Harbours and Railways: the executive, five times and delegates of all branches two times.