Hearts of Oak board chairman Togbe Afede XIV has rejected a whopping GHC365,000 ex-gratia for serving on the Council of State between 2017 and 2020.
In a statement released on Monday, the traditional leader indicated it is inappropriate for him to receive such amount having received monthly salaries for the service rendered to the state.
The majority shareholder has therefore been praised by Ghanaians over his decision not to take such amount of money.
“I did not think the payment was made to trap me, as is being speculated.”
“I believe it was paid to everybody who served on the Council of State. However, I thought that extra payment was inappropriate for a short, effectively part-time work, for which I received a monthly salary and was entitled to other privileges. So, I was very uncomfortable with it,” he added.
The businessman also opened up on how he refunded the money back.
According to him, he started the process to return the money deposited into his account in July 2021 and was successful on March 4, 2022.
“After weeks of trying, I obtained advice on how to refund inappropriate payments to the State, and on March 4, 2022, I made the refund into the Controller & Accountant General’s Department Suspense Account at the Bank of Ghana,” he said on the latest statement.
According to Togbe Afede, the move is consistent with his long-held principle of not lavishing large sums of money on public officials at the expense of the general public.
“I want to add that my rejection of the payment was consistent with my general abhorrence of the payment of huge Ex Gratia and other outrageous benefits to people who have by their own volition offered to serve our poor country,” the statement concluded.