Deceased gospel musicians Yaw Sarpong and Maame Tiwa were ineligible for full welfare benefits from the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA) because they were not members in good standing, MUSIGA President Bessa Simons said.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Showbiz A-Z with host Kwame Dadzie, Simons said union policy stipulates that members who fail to pay dues for six months and do not meet membership obligations cannot access the union’s full welfare packages.
“The last time he paid his dues was about seven years ago,” Simons said, referring to Yaw Sarpong, lead singer of the Asomafo collective.
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As a result of the lapse in payments, Simons said, Sarpong was not covered under the union’s Ageing Musicians Welfare Fund, which provides insurance for MUSIGA members aged 60 and above.
Bessa Simons noted that Maame Tiwa, also a member of Asomafo, was similarly not in good standing with the union. He added that a separate group affiliated with MUSIGA’s leadership contributed GH₵100 at her funeral. Despite the musicians’ membership status, Simons said MUSIGA made a GH₵500 contribution at Sarpong’s one-week commemoration.
The president noted that MUSIGA provides a minimum of GH₵5,000 upon the death of a member in good standing, in addition to pension and insurance support for members in cases of need, including death or incapacitation.
Additionally, he also stated that the union also aids non-members under certain circumstances as they sometimes attend such funerals and social events to offer financial support without being bound by the union’s welfare and insurance conditions.
“We get people coming to us,” he said. “Recently, a young man approached us and said his father was dead and that he wanted MUSIGA to play a role in the funeral,” he recounted.
Bessa Simons encouraged musicians and other music-related professionals to register with the union to access available benefits.