A private legal practitioner, Yaw Oppong says the resignation of the wife of the late Ekow Quansah Hayford, Ophelia Hayford from the Police Service to take up a new parliamentary role is not unconstitutional.
The leadership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) branch in Mfantseman in the Central Region on Thursday, October 15, 2020, selected Mrs. Hayford, as the party’s parliamentary candidate for the constituency in the upcoming polls.
The late Ekow Hayford was killed by unknown assailants believed to be armed robbers last week when he was returning from community engagements.
Ophelia Hayford was a Chief Inspector in the Ghana Police Service.
Some persons have referenced Act 113 of the Police Service Commission Regulation to argue that she did not follow due process in resigning from the Service.
The Act states, “An officer who wishes to resign from the service shall give 30 days notice in writing to the Inspector General of the intention to resign. The notice shall be submitted through the officer’s immediate senior officer and the date on which it is received by the senior officer shall be taken as the date on which it was submitted to the Inspector-General.”
But Yaw Oppong in an interview on the Eyewitness News spelt out exceptions to the provisions in the regulation that allows for her to resign before the stipulated three months.
“Regulation 116 which also captures voluntary retirement states that an ‘officer may retire from the service at any time upon reaching the age of 45. An officer who wishes to retire on attaining 45 years shall give three months written notice to the Inspector-General, but the Inspector-General may under exceptional circumstances waive the three months.”
Yaw Oppong further cited section 117 of the regulation which talks about premature retirement to argue that the former police officer did not breach the law.
“A member of the service who wishes to retire at an earlier date before reaching the voluntary retiring age may retire at an earlier time with the consent of the council in the case of a senior police officer. Then a subordinate officer may retire at an earlier age with the consent of the Inspector General, provided that officer has served for 10 years.”
“Any police officer who finds herself in her position may take the benefit of 116 and 117 instead of going under 113 under resignation. Especially in her case, she has served for more than 20 years. And she is more than 45 years, she needs not to go under 113 at all, even if she did, she can be captured under voluntary retirement under 116 and there will not be any problem at all,” Yaw Oppong explained.
