The case in which 88 dismissed officers of the National Security Secretariat have sued the Attorney-General and the National Security Co-ordinator for wrongful dismissal and unpaid end-of service benefits could not be heard yesterday because counsel for applicants and defendant were both not in court. This prompted Justice C. J. Honyemuga, the trial judge, to adjourn the case to November 26. At the court sitting yesterday, the judge said records before him indicated that it was only the Attorney-General who had been served with the hearing notice. Justice Honyemuga, therefore, advised counsel for the applicants, Nkrabea Effah Dartey, to also serve the National Security Coordinator. The personnel are seeking a declaration that they are entitled to end of service benefits upon the termination of their appointment, which is consistent with the conditions governing their employment as staff of the National Security Secretariat. The former security operatives who worked under the previous administration are also seeking an order compelling the National Security Co-ordinator and the Attorney-General to pay their benefits. In their statement of claim, they contended that they are citizens of Ghana and were fully employed as regular staff of the National Security Secretariat. Although they lost their jobs due to the change in the political leadership of the country, the current President acknowledged "his appreciation of their dedicated and loyal service to the state". According to them, in partial fulfillment of the conditions governing the termination of their appointment, they were each paid three months salary in lieu of notice. They, therefore, petitioned for the payment of their end of service benefits but that was ignored and letters written by their solicitor did not yield any result. They said unless the court intervened, the defendants would not heed to their demands. Source: The Ghanaian Times