More than 12,000 national service personnel are preparing to take to the streets over an outstanding refund from the National Service Authority (NSA), nearly a year after the Authority promised to return registration fees paid through its former digital platform.
The affected personnel say they have been left without clear answers over the GH¢40 or GH¢41 they paid to register on the old system after the NSA subsequently cancelled the registrations and directed them to enrol again on a new platform.
A concerned national service personnel, who spoke to metrotvonline.com on condition of anonymity, said affected applicants who recently visited the NSA headquarters in Accra were allegedly told that the current administration had not received the necessary registration data from its predecessor.
According to the source, officials claimed the former management had not handed over the list of applicants who registered on the old platform, making it difficult for the Authority to process the refunds.
The explanation has heightened frustration among the affected personnel, who argue that an administrative transition within the same public institution should not deprive them of money they paid to the Authority.
The dispute dates back to June 2025, when registrations conducted on the former Central Service Management Platform (CSMP) were declared null and void following a technical and forensic audit.
At a press briefing on October 7, 2025, NSA Director-General Ruth Dela Seddoh assured legitimate registrants that their registration fees would be refunded. The Authority subsequently instructed the affected applicants to register again on a new platform.
The NSA said the cancellation followed the discovery of data integrity concerns, including discrepancies involving applicants’ ages and other identification details.
Reports at the time indicated that more than 12,000 people had registered through the old system, with more than 2,000 records raising concerns over the authenticity or accuracy of information provided.
However, the affected personnel say the promised refunds have yet to materialise.
“We went to the NSA Headquarters to enquire about the refund. Surprisingly, we were told that ‘as we speak the previous administration are refusing to give the list of those who registered on the old system to us that’s why you haven’t received the refund from the old system’,” the source said.
The source questioned what had happened to the money paid by applicants and why the current administration could not obtain the records required to process the refunds.
“Meaning we won’t get those monies again,” the source said.
The personnel are demanding clarification on whether the former management has formally been engaged over the alleged failure to hand over the records and whether the issue has been brought to the attention of President John Dramani Mahama.
They also want an explanation as to how records belonging to a public institution could become inaccessible during a change in management.
“Why must ordinary service personnel be caught in a fight between two authorities?” the source asked.
The controversy comes amid broader scrutiny of the NSA’s previous administration following investigations into suspected ghost names on the national service payroll.
In February 2025, President Mahama directed the National Investigations Bureau to investigate the Authority after as many as 81,885 suspected ghost names were identified on the payroll.
The government said a headcount subsequently established that only 98,145 personnel were physically present out of 180,030 names submitted for allowance payments.
The registration controversy subsequently formed part of wider reforms at the Authority, including the transition to a new digital platform and tighter verification and financial controls.
Ms Seddoh took over as Director-General in September 2025, succeeding Felix Gyamfi, after previously serving as Deputy Director-General in charge of Administration and Finance.
The affected personnel say the urgency of the matter has increased because their national service is scheduled to end on September 30, 2026.
“If we finish, that’s all. But what happened to the monies after our national service?” the source asked.
The source also alleged that some representatives of the National Service Personnel Association (NASPA) in the Greater Accra Region have been discouraged from speaking publicly about the issue.
“They have threatened our Regional Presidents so they said they won’t talk about it again and now they are threatening the District Presidents not to talk about it,” the source alleged.
The personnel stressed that the refund they are demanding is separate from deductions associated with the controversial NASPA capacity-building programme involving Zeus Atlas Limited.
That separate matter resulted in the NSA Board ordering the suspension of deductions from national service allowances in July 2026 and directing NASPA to suspend its agreement with Zeus Atlas pending a review.
With the refund dispute unresolved, the affected personnel say they are now preparing for a demonstration scheduled for Friday, September 11, 2026.
According to the source, the Greater Accra Regional Police Command has approved the date, while organisers have been invited to the Police Headquarters on Monday, September 7, to agree on the route.
The personnel insist that their demand is not simply about the relatively small amount paid by each applicant but about accountability and the principle that money collected under a registration process later declared invalid should be refunded.
They are therefore calling on the NSA to account for the funds, explain the delay and resolve any administrative dispute over the records so the refunds can be paid before their national service ends.
