The National Service Secretariat (NSS) has asked all service personnel to immediately take their mandatory paid-leave, starting from today, Thursday March 26. This is part of measures taken by the Secretariat to help curb the communal spread of the novel Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Ghana.
NSS says the directive is in compliance with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s precautionary directive banning all social gatherings as well as the Public Services Commission’s circular recommending all interns, national service personnel, Nation Builders Corps (NaBCo) officers and other non-essential staff to take their leave.
A statement signed by the Executive Director, NSS, Mustapha Ussif, said “this special arrangement replaces the annual terminal leave granted to all national service personnel under the NSS ACT 426, which is the last month of their service periods.”
“This means personnel will be at the post in the last month of national service,” added the statement.
The Secretariat has also directed all newly posted nurses, who to start their national service in April, to also take that month as their terminal leave.
NSS has thus entreated user agencies of the Scheme to comply with the directive.
Ashanti markets disinfection
In a related development, market centres in the Ashanti Region will be disinfected tomorrow, Friday March 27. This is part of the measures put together by the government to manage the spread of the novel Coronavirus disease.
A statement issued yesterday by the Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei-Mensah, said a team of sprayers will be conducting the exercise in the region, adding that during the period, the various markets will be closed to prevent all obstructions.
“I wish to take this opportunity to passionately appeal to all traders in the markets to co-operate and comply with the ban on activities in the markets in the region on Friday March 27, 2020,” Mr Osei-Mensah said.
He assured the public that chemicals used for the spraying exercise are not harmful and “there is therefore no cause for fear of negative effects.”