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The National Service Scheme (NSS) has addressed the recent public concern regarding the GH¢40 Online Enrolment Activation fee for prospective national service personnel to activate PIN codes for the 2024/2025 service year.
In response to media reports that sparked public outrage, the NSS issued a statement on Friday, June 21, clarifying that the GH¢40 charge is not a new development. The statement emphasized that the portrayal of this fee as an extortion was misleading and unfair.
“The National Service Scheme (NSS) has taken notice of concerns raised by a section of the public regarding the GH¢40 fee required from prospective national service personnel to activate PIN codes for the 2024/2025 service year enrolment. It is clear that the authors of the storyline did not find out much about the issues and rather sought to twist and skew the story to portray the Scheme negatively to the public, as though this was an extortion, as they suggested in their writeup. Management wishes to clarify that the GH¢40 charge for PIN codes is not a recent development,” the NSS stated.
The NSS explained that initially, the fee was deducted from the personnel’s first-month allowances after they were posted. However, this payment method was changed in 2015, requiring service personnel to pay the fee upfront before enrolment.
“The fee was initially paid through deductions at source from the first month allowances of the service personnel after they have been posted. However, the mode of payment was changed in 2015 to allow service personnel to pay before enrolment,” the statement elaborated.
The NSS reiterated that the GH¢40 charge is an established practice essential for maintaining ICT infrastructure and services. This fee supports the efficient operation of the NSS and includes costs for NSS electronic ID cards, National Service Personnel Association (NASPA) dues, and online services.
“We reiterate that the GH¢40 charge is a well-established practice that supports the essential ICT infrastructure and services necessary for the efficient operation of NSS.”
The breakdown of the GH¢40 fee includes GH¢10 for NSS electronic ID cards, GH¢10 for NASPA dues, and GH¢20 for online services and NSS certificates.
