Former legal counsel to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Kow Essuman, has threatened to sue the government over unpaid salary arrears and terminal benefits, accusing the Finance Minister and the Attorney-General of failing to respond to his demands for payment.

Mr Essuman said he was prepared to pursue legal action if the outstanding entitlements were not settled, although he remained hopeful that the matter could be resolved without going to court.

The dispute follows a demand letter from his lawyers, Vint & Aletheia, to the Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, seeking payment of his outstanding salary arrears and terminal benefits by Friday, September 11, 2026.

The lawyers warned that failure to meet the deadline could compel their client to seek legal redress.

According to the letter, the benefits being claimed include four months’ consolidated salary for every completed year of service, an installation grant equivalent to one month’s salary and a resettlement grant equivalent to one month’s salary for each year or fraction of a year served.

The lawyers described the continued withholding of the payments as “arbitrary, discriminatory, unfair and unlawful”, arguing that other public officeholders had received their entitlements.

In an interview with JoyNews’ Gemma Appiah, Mr Essuman said his attempts to secure payment through correspondence had not yielded any response from the relevant authorities.

“I’m ready because this is contractual. I hope that we can resolve it before then. Honestly, but the attitude of the Finance Minister and the Attorney-General of not responding, not paying any heed to a former government official who’s written regarding salary arrears and terminal benefits is something that we really as a country need to look at,” he said.

He described the situation as unfortunate, insisting that he should not have to repeatedly write to government officials to demand benefits he considers contractually due to him.

Mr Essuman further stressed that his previous positions in government made the situation particularly troubling.

“It’s quite unfortunate. It shouldn’t get to this. It shouldn’t get to it. And I was not just a government official – I was legal counsel to the President and subsequently acting Secretary to the President. You know, that’s not how this country should act. It shouldn’t be me that should be writing to a Finance Minister to demand this. It’s completely on principle and unfair,” he said.

Mr Essuman maintains that he is willing to reach an agreement with the government without litigation but says he will resort to the courts if his outstanding claims remain unresolved.

Akufo-Addo’s former legal counsel threatens court action over unpaid salary arrears

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