 |
| Nana Ohene Ntow |
“The
Insight” has obtained the full text of the Nana Ohene Ntow’s report on fund
raising and financial matters in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and we are
publishing it for the benefit of our readers;
Here
is the report.
REPORT OF THE AD HOC COMMITTEE OF THE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE
COMMITTEE OF THE NEW PATRIOTIC PARTY TO INVESTIGATE THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING
THE MANAGEMENT OF FUNDS ACCRUING FROM THE PARTY'S PARLIAMENTARY PRIMARIES AND
OTHER RELATED MATTERS
SUBMITTED BY:
NANA OHENE-NTOW,
CHAIRMAN OF THE COMMITTEE
DATED: 20TH NOVEMBER, 2015
CONTENTS
Contents ............................................................................................................. i
Executive Summary…………………………………………………………….....II
Preamble/Committee
Membership ............................................................... 1
Preliminary Objection to Nana
Ohene-Ntow's Chairmanship ................. 2
Proceedings - National Treasurer
Testifies ................................................. 3
General Secretary Testifies .............................................................................. 4
National Chairman Testifies ............................................................................ 5
Proceeds From Primaries/Lodgments ......................................................... 6
Genesis of The Ecobank Account ................................................................... 7
Treasurer on Lodgments/Approvals for
Disbursement ............................ 8
Talensi By-Elections ......................................................................................... 10
Textgenesys
......................................................................................................... 11
Finance Committee Testifies ......................................................................... 14
Causes of Lack of Cooperation ....................................................................... 16
Interaction with Flag Bearer .......................................................................... 20
Baah Achamfuor Appears ............................................................................... 20
.
Recommendations ........................................................................................... 22
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On
the 19th of August, 2015, the
National Executive Committee of the New Patriotic Party set up a Five-Member
Committee chaired by former General Secretary, Nana Ohene-Ntow, to investigate
among other things, charges and allegations of improper handling of funds that accrued
to the party from the June 2015:Parliamentary Primaries.
The
Committee heard testimony from Twelve (12) witnesses and established that there
were indeed some unconstitutionality, misconduct and indiscipline on the part
of certain national officers in the handling of the said funds, and in the
general discharge of their duties.
In view
of the committee's findings, this report recommends among other things:
1. That clear and detailed Financial
Management Rules and Regulations are enacted for the party to ensure proper
management of the party's financial affairs. These guidelines should also set
out more clearly the lines and structures of hierarchy, organization
supervision and reporting to ensure smooth and effective running of the party;
2. That an introspection retreat of all
national and other key officials of the party is organized with the assistance
of professional counsellors and psychologists with a view to dealing with the
suspicions, fears and mistrust of all concerned in order to enhance greater
cooperation and harmony in the leadership and management of the party.
3. That to forestall future repeat of the
findings of the Committee and also to serve as a deterrent to other officers of
the party, the officers found to have misconducted themselves are referred to
the National Disciplinary Committee for the appropriate disciplinary action and
sanctions to be instituted against them.
REPORT OF THE AD HOC COMMITTEE OF THE
NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE NEW PATRIOTIC PARTY TO INVESTIGATE THE
CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING THE MANAGEMENT OF FUNDS ACCRUING FROM THE PARTY'S
PARLIAMENTARY PRIMARIES AND OTHER RELATED MATTERS
SUBMITTED BY
NANA OHENE-NTOW,
~
CHAIRMAN OF
THE COMMITTEE
PREAMBLE
At its sitting held on Wednesday, 19th August, 2015, the National Executive
Committee of the New Patriotic Party set up this Ad Hoc Committee to
investigate the management of the monies that accrued to the party from the
Parliamentary primaries for the 2016 general elections. The setting up of the
committee became necessary following allegations and counter allegations
between the National Treasurer, Mr. Abankwa Yeboah on one hand and the General
Secretary, Mr. Kwabena Agyepong and the National Chairman, Mr. Paul Atoko on
the other regarding the accounting for the lodgment and disbursement of
proceeds from the primaries held in June, 2015.
The membership of the
Committee is as follows:
|
1.
|
Nana
Ohene-Ntow
|
-Chairman
|
|
2.
|
Hon
Joe Osei-Owusu
|
-Secretary
|
|
3.
|
Hon
Anthony Akoto Osei
|
-
Member
|
|
4.
|
Hon
Kwaku Agyeman Manu
|
-
Member
|
|
5.
|
Hon
George Gyan Baffuor
|
-
Member
|
The Terms of Reference of
the committee as contained in the letter of the National Chairman confirming
the appointment of the members are as follows:
1.
To
establish the total amount collected as fees for the 2015 parliamentary
primaries;
2.
To
establish the bank account(s) into which the fees were lodged;
3.
To
determine the disbursements out of those accounts and the purpose for those
disbursements;
4.
To
establish the approvals of those disbursements;
5.
To investigate the cause(s) of the impasse
between the National Treasurer and the National Chairman/General Secretary;
6.
To
ascertain how the dormant Bank Account at the Trust Towers Branch, was
reactivated, and how it was operated;
7. To investigate the circumstances under
which the National Treasurer entered into a contract with Textgenesys Limited
for the collection of Membership Dues and Monies that have accrued from the
process;
8.
To
investigate any other matters which I in
the opinion of the Committee, are relevant to its work;
9.
To
submit Recommendations to forestall any such occurrences in the future.
PRELIMINARY
OBJECTION TO NANA OHENE-NTOW'S CHAIRMANSHIP OF COMMITTEE
 |
| Nana Akufo Addo |
At the very outset of the committee's work, majority (three)
out of the four members present at the Committee's first sitting, raised
objections to the Chairmanship of Nana Ohene-Ntow, my very good self, on
grounds that the decision to nominate the Chairman should have been taken at
the National Executive Committee meeting that set up the committee rather than
by the Letter of Mandate to members signed by the National Chairman, Mr. Paul
Afoko. After some mild altercation, members agreed to work with the directives
as contained in the National Chairman's Mandate Letter.
Incidentally, three witnesses who appeared before the
committee namely Messrs. Abankwa Yeboah, the National Treasurer, Freddie Blay,
the 1st Vice
Chairman and John Boadu, the National Organizer also raised similar objections
to the Chairmanship of Yours Truly for various reasons. These objections were
also eventually over ruled.
, Tile Committee in all interviewed
twelve (12) witnesses over a period of fifteen (15) sitting days after the
National Chairman had inaugurated it on 25th August, 2015. The committee also had a
special session with the Flag bearer, Nana Akufo Addo in his office at Ringway
Estates.
The witnesses who appeared
before the committee are:
1.
Paul
Afoko - National Chairman
2.
K.
Abankwa Yeboah - National Treasurer
3.Freddie Blay -
National 1st Vice Chairman
4.Fred Oware -Immediate
Past 1st Vice
Chairman
5.Hon Daniel Botwe - Minority Chief Whip
6.Dr. K. K. Sarpong -
Representative of the Finance Committee
7.Kwabena A. Agyepong -
General Secretary
8.John Boadu -
National Organiser
9.Sammy Crabbe -
National 2nd Vice Chairman';
10.
Esther Ofori - Immediate Past Treasurer
11. Gifty Ama Ayeh - Past Treasurer
12. Baah Achamfuor - Party Membe
11. Gifty Ama Ayeh
12. Baah Achamfuor- Past Treasurer - Party
Member
PROCEEDINGS
HOW
MUCH WAS REALIZED FROM PARLIAMENTARY PRIMARIES
The
National Treasurer was the first witness to give full testimony to the
committee after the National Chairman had made some introductory remarks during
the committee's inauguration.
On
how much was realized from the parliamentary primary process, National
Treasurer
recalled that sources of receivables
included sale of forms, filing fees and in some cases a special development
levy. He indicated that the forms were not all sold at one point of sale and
therefore could not provide accurate information on revenue from sale of forms.
Putting all receivables that came to his notice together however, Treasurer
testified that he could account for a total of Eight Million, Eight Hundred and
Fifty-Five Thousand Ghana Cedis
(GHC 8,855,000.00). This total included collections from all
the regions, waivers, dishonored cheques and shortfalls in some cases, as well
as some payments that were made to some Regional Secretariats instead of the
National Secretariat. The Treasurer indicated for example that in the case of
Central Region, One Thousand Ghana Cedis of the collections was paid to the
Regional Secretariat. He gave the breakdown of receipts as follows:
i.
Expected
Revenue - GHC 9,015,000.00
ii Actual
Revenue GHC 8,855,000.00
.
iii' Waivers - GHC 16,000.00
iv
Unaccounted For GHC 89,000.00
The National Treasurer testified further that the General
Secretary handed over to his (Treasurer's) office all drafts that had been
submitted to him (the General Secretary). The above stated total thus covers
both receipts made directly to the General Secretary and the National
Treasurer. This was later corroborated by the General Secretary.
 |
| Paul Afoko, National Chairman of the NPP |
As to what the Treasurer did with the drafts, he indicated
that due to his concerns that there was a conspiracy on the part of the General
Secretary and the National Chairman to sideline him in the financial operations
of the party, he held on to the drafts he had received for some time without
lodging them in the party's bank accounts at the Ghana Commercial Bank, Accra North
Branch. Incidentally, the party's two accounts at the above-mentioned GCB
Branch were the only accounts being officially operated by the current
administration, although the party had a myriad of accounts with several banks.
According to the Treasurer, his reasons for not lodging the drafts into the
officially operated GCB accounts were that the General Secretary and the
National Chairman had written to the bank to delete his name as a signatory to
the party's accounts, and that the two had further directed the banks not to
provide him (the Treasurer) with any of the party's bank statements.
NB
It is important to note here that these GCB accounts were
the only accounts the current administration was operating officially, in spite
of the fact that the party had a plethora of accounts with a number of
banks, It is important to
note further that earlier charges made by the National Treasurer that the
General Secretary and the National Chairman had written to the bank to delete
his name as signatory to the party's bank accounts, and also that the banks
should not furnish him with the party's bank statements were found by the
committee to be false; that indeed to date the Treasurer is still signatory to
all bank accounts of the party operated by the current administration, and has
been jointly signing cheques, particularly with the General Secretary.
ii.
GENERAL SECRETARY TESTIFIES
The General Secretary gave evidence before the committee
that it was difficult for him to determine the exact amount received from the
primaries in view of the fact while some of the bank drafts from the regions
covering the filing fees and other levies were handed to him for his recording
and onward transmission to the National Treasurer, others were received
directly by the Treasurer who basically refused to do any reconciliation of
accounts with him. General Secretary recounted that drafts from Central,
Eastern, Upper East and Greater Accra Regions were NOT submitted to him; that
he later learned that these drafts had been received directly by the
Treasurer. Those drafts that were submitted to his office were recorded and the
drafts forwarded to the Treasurer by the end of the first week of May 2015 for
onward lodgment into the party's authorized bank accounts. He reckoned that
together with waivers granted a few contestants upon prior approval by the
National Executive Committee and National Council, the total receipts from the
primaries should be about Nine Million, One Hundred and Forty-Five Thousand
Ghana Cedis (GHC 9,145,000.00).
 |
| Kwabena Agyepong |
At this juncture, the General Secretary affirmed that
charges and accusations being levelled against him in certain quarters that the
decision to grant waivers was unilaterally taken by him were unfounded, and
that indeed 'that decision had been taken by NEC and affirmed by Council. He
affirms that he only implemented a Council decision. The only important caveat
here worthy of note is that such waivers were to be granted on a case-by-case basis
- which is what he did, according to his testimony.
iii NATIONAL CHAIRMAN TESTIFIES
The National
Chairman made three appearances at the committee's sittings: the first was when
he inaugurated the committee during which he provided some valuable information
which are detailed out later in this report. His second was occasioned by the
police intervention in the whole saga of the Ecobank Account affair that had
been reported to the police by one Baah Achamfuor, a party member. The
committee basically summoned the Chairman to clarify issues surrounding a
statement that he had made to the police on the issue, and whether his
"cooperation" with the police did not undermine or prejudice the work
of the committee.
The Chairman Mr. Afokodid indeed respond
to this summons of the committee and explained that he had initially declined
to speak to the police on the issue since it was an internal party matter but
was however advised by his legal counsel that he was duty bound by the laws of
Ghana to oblige the police, except that he must keep his statement concise and
factual to avoid any future charges of perjury should the case escalate into a
judicial matter. He said his counsel further advised him that matters involving
political parties, their operations -financial and otherwise - are matters
governed by national laws and affected by public interest for which reasons he
had no option but to cooperate with the police. He told the committee that he
objected to going to the police station to make a statement, his reason being
that the issue was an internal matter.
Upon persistence from the police, he agreed that the police
visit his residence in the company of his legal counsel. It was at this
juncture that he provided a brief statement to the police indicating that
indeed there was such as issue regarding the party's financial management, and
that the party had already instituted a committee to look into the matter.
In view of earlier suspicions that the National Chairman may
be the brain behind Baah Achamfuor, the gentleman who had reported the matter
to the police, the committee inquired from the Chairman whether that may be the
case. The Chairman strongly denied any knowledge, contact or affinity with the
gentleman in question, and urged the committee todo their own investigation of
that suspicion. The committee would later find out from Mr. Baah Achamfuor
himself that indeed he did not know the Chairman personally, neither had he
Achamfuor been in contact with the Chairman at any time, and that his decision
to report the matter to the police were informed by certain considerations
which this report details in latter paragraphs during Baah Achamfuor's
testimony to the committee.
Asked by the committee whether such "cooperation"
with the police on his part did not make moot the committee's work, the
National Chairman responded in the negative, insisting that the committee's
work was merely internal fact finding and not judicial by any stretch of the
imagination. At this juncture, members agreed to proceed with the committee's
work.
Proceeds
From Primaries
On the subject of how much was realized from the primary
process, the Chairman told the committee that his information on the issue is
limited to what the General Secretary had reported to him (as captured in the
General Secretary's testimony above).
FINDING ON PROCEEDS FROM PRIMARiES
The committee finds as a
fact that total revenue generated from the parliamentary primaries was Eight
Million, Eight-Hundred and Fifty-Five Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHC 8,855,000.00).
LODGMENTS
Primary evidence on where the monies realized from
the-parllamentarv primaries were lodged was given by the National Chairman, the
General Secretary and the National Treasurer. All others who spoke on this
matter were reporting what had been told them by one or the other of these three
witnesses.
In reporting on
Lodgments, it is important to note that the issue of where the monies
realized from the parliamentary primaries were lodged is probably the most
critical issue that triggered this whole investigation by this committee. It
has to be noted further that in all probability, had the Treasurer not taken
the unilateral decision to lodge the bulk of the proceeds from the
parliamentary primaries into the dormant Ecobank Trust Towers Branch account,
and had he deposited all receipts in the known, recognized, authorized and
operational bank accounts of the party at GCB, there may not have been the need
for this investigation in the first place.
The National Chairman told the committee that upon
assumption of office, his administration inherited a plethora of bank accounts
spread over several banks including one at the Prudential Bank that was
operated by Messrs Ken Ofori Atta and Kelly Gadzekpo who happen not to be
officers nor workers of the party. For the sake of ease of financial operations
of the party a decision was taken between the Chairman, the General Secretary
and the National Treasurer to activate and operate only two of the party's
accounts held at the Ghana Commercial Bank, Accra-North Branch, Kwame Nkrumah Circle.
The Treasurer had insisted on activating more of the party's bank accounts with
the various banks but the Chairman declined to approve such a move, insisting
that it was better to keep the party's bank operations simple.
Against the background of the foregoing; the Chairman told
the committee that his expectation was that all lodgments of monies accruing
from the parliamentary primaries would naturally be lodged in the GCB accounts
which had been activated and were being operated by his administration. It
therefore came to him as a surprise when it emerged at a meeting of the Finance
Committee that the National Treasurer had lodged the bulk of the proceeds from
the parliamentary primaries in a dormant account of the party at the Trust
Towers Branch of Ecobank which the Treasurer had reactivated on the blind side
of the National Chairman, General Secretary and indeed the Steering Committee.
The Treasurer confirmed this fact to the committee later in his testimony, and
further told the committee that the account was operated by himself and 1st Vice
Chairman, Mr. Freddie Blay.
This development led to a situation where part of the
proceeds from the parliamentary primaries had been)odged into this reactivated
Ecobankaccount whilst the rest were lodged into the GCB accounts which were
being officially operated by the current administration. After reconciling the
positions of the Chairman, General Secretary and the Treasurer, the lodgment
into the two bank accounts were as follow
i.
Ghana
Commercial Bank (Accra-North Branch) GHC
3,807,000.00
ii.
Ecobank
(Trust Towers Branch) GHC
5,054,000.00
The Treasurer would inform the committee later that with respect
to the Ecobank lodgments, a cheque for Six Thousand and Eight Ghana Cedis (GHC 6,008.00)
was dishonored, leaving a
balance of Five Million, Forty-Seven Thousand, Nine Hundred and Ninety-Two
Ghana Cedis (GHC 5,047,992.00). NB The Committee noted that the said payment
by cheque by any contestant in the primaries was irregular since all payments
were to be made by banker's draft.
GENESIS OF THE ECOBANK
ACCOUNT
The Ecobank account, the operation of which has become the
main centre of the current controversy was actually opened bya former National
Chairman of the party, Mr. Peter McManu under rather questionable
circumstances. It turns out that Mr. McManu opened this account during his
tenure as National Chairman on the blind side of both then National Treasurer
and General Secretary. The account was apparently run by the then Chairman Mr.
McManu and the then Chairman of the Finance Committee, Mr. Collins Adu Gyamfi.
These facts were borne out by the Immediate Past National Treasurer, Madam
Esther Ofori in her testimony to the committee.
 |
| Freddie Blay, NPP Acting Chairman |
Against this background, there was a proposal from this Ad
hoc Committee's Chairman that Mr. McManu be invited to shed more light on the
genesis and the running of the account. Incidentally, majority (four) members
of the five-member committee kicked against Mr. McManu being invited to
testify.
TREASURER
ON LODGMENTS/APPROVALS FOR DISBURSEMENT
The National Treasurer, Mr. Abankwa Yeboah testified to the
committee that after collecting the banks drafts, some directly from the
regions and others from the General Secretary, he held on to them for some time
without lodging them in the party's bank accounts. According to him, his
reluctance to deposit the monies into the GCB accounts operated jointly by the
Treasurer, the General Secretary and the National Chairman was due to his
assertion that the General Secretary and the National Chairman had written to
instruct the bank not to recognize him the Treasurer as a signatory to the
party's account. According to the Treasurer, lodging the funds in the GCB
account(s) would have meant that he would have been excluded from the
management of those funds since, according to him only the signatures of the
two officers i.e. the National Chairman and the General Secretary were used to
operate the GCB accounts.
The amount of Three Million, Eight-Hundred Thousand Ghana
Cedis (GHC 3,807,000.00) lodged into the GCB account was only done after a
meeting of the Finance committee was informed of the Treasurer's refusal to
lodge the monies in the known GCB account, and for which reason the General
Secretary and the National' Chairman were having difficulty accessing the money
for release to constituencies for the conduct of the parliamentary primaries.
The committee was later to be informed by the Representative
of the Finance Committee, Dr. K. K. Sarpong that after a verbal reprimand of
the National Treasurer, the Finance Committee issued orders to the Treasurer to
lodge monies into the party's known and operated accounts in order to make the
funds accessible to the General Secretary to finance the parliamentary
primaries and other urgent party business. In deed even after these orders from
the Finance Committee, the General Secretary would later inform the
investigation committee that the Treasurer obstructed the transfer of a lump
sum of Ten Thousand Ghana Cedis meant for each constituency for them to
commence preparations for the primaries. The said lump sum transfer was to
serve as part payment of the constituencies' share of 40% of the revenue
accruing from the parliamentary primaries as decided by an earlier National
Council meeting.
APPROVALS
On approvals for disbursements
from the Ecobank account, the Treasurer testified that such approvals were
ordered by the 1st Vice Chairman, Mr. Freddie Blay.
This fact was confirmed by Mr. Blay in his- own testimony to
the committee. It has to be noted parenthetically that the 1st Vice Chairman's actions in this regard
were ultra vires, as the National Chairman whom the Vice Chairman is
constitutionally to assist in the performance of his functions as Chairman, and
on whose behalf the Vice Chairman is to act only in situations where the
Chairman was not available in the jurisdiction or is unable to perform his
constitutional functions for any reason(s) whatsoever, was both available in
the jurisdiction and was ready, willing and
able to perform his constitutionally mandated functions, as the committee would
later learn from the National Chairman. Incidentally, the 1st Vice Chairman himself
confirmed to the committee the fact that while all the above irregular
developments were taking place, the National Chairman, as he (the 1st Vice Chairman himself) put it: "was
not-known to be unavailable in the jurisdiction". Asked whether he
made any effort to reach
the Chairman before his usurpation of the Chairman's functions, the 1st
Vice Chairman's response was that the National Chairman never picks his calls so he did not see the
need to make
the effort to reach
him, since such effort to
him,
was not going to yield
any worthwhile-results.
DISBURSEMENTS
After the lodgment of the
various sums of money in the GeB and reactivated Ecobank accounts,
disbursements from these accounts were as follows:
1. The National Treasurer testified that
with the approval of the pt Vice Chairman, he disbursed a total of
Six Hundred and Eighty-One Thousand, Seven Hundred and Forty-Six Ghana Cedis,
and Ninety-Seven Pesewas (GHC 681,746.97) by way of cash withdrawals from the
reactivated Ecobank account, all for the Talensi By-Election.
The Treasurer again testified that he took a decision to
disburse a further Three Million, Nine Hundred and Ninety-Nine Thousand,
Nine-Hundred and Ninety-Nine Ghana Cedis, Thirty-Eight Pesewas (GHC
3,999,999.38) from the same account for the purchase of Treasury Bills. He
further testified that he had also established a Call Account and put an amount
of Four-Hundred and Thirty Thousand Ghana Cedis of the funds into that account
on behalf of the party. These decisions he said were approved by the pt Vice
Chairman, Mr. Freddie Blay. Beyond the Bank Statement that gives an indication
of these two major transactions, the Treasurer has however failed so far to
provide the certificate and other original documentation covering the said
Treasury Bill and Call Account as of the time of filing this report.
It is the view of the Committee that the decision of the
National Treasurer to reactivate the dormant Ecobank account and pay into same
proceeds from the parliamentary primaries without the National Chairman,
General Secretary and/or the Steering Committee knowing, discussing or
approving such a major high level strategic management decision, was grossly
wrong. In deed this behavior of the National Treasurer is at variance with
known best practice of organizational management, and even alien to the party's
rules, regulations, precedents and conventions. The National Treasurer is not
an island on his own even in the financial management matters of the party
notwithstanding whatever interpretation he or for that matter anyone else puts
on Article 9 Clause G (i) of the Party's Constitution. The 1st Vice Chairman's unilateral approval of
the above transactions without any reference to the General Secretary, the
National Chairman nor indeed the Steering Committee is equally grossly wrong.
2. The General Secretary also testified that
he disbursed an amount of about Three Million, Eight-Hundred Thousand Ghana
Cedis (GHC 3,800,000.00) by way of direct bank transfers from the GCB account
to all Two-Hundred and Seventy-Five Constituencies for the purpose of funding
the Parliamentary Primaries. He affirmed that the claim in the media by the
National Treasurer and the pt Vice Chairman that he and the National
Chairman had squandered party funds were unfounded, false and baseless, as all
the funds he disbursed went straight as transfers from the Ghana Commercial
Bank to the bank accounts of the various constituencies. According to the
General Secretary's testimony, this transaction did not involve nor require any
cash withdrawals by him. The only cash withdrawals he ordered involved payments
to the Electoral Commission and the Security agencies that had provided
services for the party during the parliamentary primaries. Even in this
instance, the General Secretary testified that representatives of these two
agencies were present at the bank to receive the payments to their agencies
once the cash was paid across the counter to a party representative.
TAlENSI BY-ELECTION
Evidence before the committee confirmed that the party
participated in the Talensi ByElection which took place on July r:
2015, in Talensi
Constituency in the Upper East Region. The funding of the Talensi By-Election
featured prominently among the uses to which the revenue from the parliamentary
primaries was put.
 |
| Acting NPP General Secretary, John Boadu |
All witnesses who appeared before the
committee particularly the National Chairman, the General Secretary and the
National Organizer agreed that a budget was generated by the National Organizer
for the by-election. The General Secretary who was on his way for a foreign
travel reviewed the budget and tasked the National Organizer to finalize it
with the National Chairman in view of the fact that he (General Secretary) was going
to be out of the jurisdiction. As to what was the final budgetary figure for
the Talensi by-election, there was a bit discrepancy between the figures
testified to by the General Secretary and the National Organizer. The National
Chairman however testified that he finally approved a budget of Four Hundred
and Fifty Thousand Ghana Cedis. Both the National Chairman and the National
Organlzer confirmed that the discussions on the Talensi budget involved the
Parliamentary Candidate.
For some reason, after all these discussions that led to the
National Chairman approving the final budget for the by-election, another
meeting chaired by the pt Vice Chairman was held in the Office of
the Flag Bearer on the same Talensi by-election with virtually all national
officers, the Deputy Minority Leader and the Minority Chief Whip in attendance
although the National Chairman was, as the 1St
Vice Chairman himself put
it: not known to be unavailable in the jurisdiction. Asked why he would chair
what to all intents and purposes was a Steering Committee meeting even though
the National Chairman was available in the jurisdiction, the 1st Vice
Chairman agreed that it was wrong. He was however quick to add that although he
chaired, the meeting was called not by him but by the Flag Bearer, Nana Akufo
Addo.
Final Expenditure on
Talensi
At this juncture it must be noted that in addition to an
amount of Six Hundred and Eighty-Three Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHC 683,000.00)
which was disbursed from the Econank account solely for the Talensi
by-election/additional amounts of Fifty Thousand Chana Cedis (GHC 50,000.00) from
the Parliamentary group and a personal contribution of One Hundred and Seventy
Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHC 170,000.00) from the Flag Bearer were also spent on
the Talensi by-election, bringing the total final expenditure to Nine-Hundred
and Three Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHC 903,000.00).
TEXTGENESYS
Fred Oware on
Textgenesys
According the testimony of the Immediate Past pt Vice
Chairman, Mr. Fred Oware, during their term in office, the party entered into
an agreement with Textgenesys, a telecom intermediary service provider, to act
as an intermediary between the party and the telecom companies for the 'Text
fund raising' project which had been initiated by his administration. This
intermediary arrangement became necessary owing to the fact that the telecom
companies especially MTN with whom the party was seeking to undertake the
project, were not prepared to deal directly with the party in this transaction.
Mr. Oware further testified that after some time of the operation of the project,
the party was dissatisfied with the performance of Textgenesys as there
a.ppeared to be a lack of transparency on the part of Textgenesys.
 |
| Fred Oware |
As of the time the current administration took office, the
Textgenesys agreement with the party appeared to have broken down. It is
important to note at this juncture that although all officers past and present,
who gave testimony on the party's agreement with Textgenesys referred to an
original contract between the party and Textgenesys, none of these witnesses was
able to furnish the committee with a copy of the said original contract.
Indeed, not even the Immediate Past pt Vice Chairman, Mr. Fred Oware whose brain
child happens to be the Textgenesys project, could provide the committee with a
copy of the Textgenesys contract.
Esther Ofori on
Textgenesys
In her testimony to the Committee, the Immediate Past
National Treasurer, Madam Esther Ofori tendered in evidence her handing over
notes in which she questioned the manner in which Textgenesys had handled the
financial management of the project. She testified that she had questioned the
situation where Textgenesys had made two direct cash payments into the party's
accounts as improper. She said without the contract document, she could not determine
the terms and conditions under which Textgenesys was to deliver revenue to the
party.
Abankwa Yeboah on
Textgenesys
The National Treasurer told the committee that their
administration inherited the Textgenesys "contract" from the previous
administration. He said because the new administration was not quite clear
about the terms and particularly the benefits of the Textgenesys arrangement
for the party a decision was taken by the National Chairman, the General
Secretary and himself the National Treasurer to abrogate whatever contract
there may be between the party and Textgenesys.
After this decision however, the Treasurer, for some strange
reason, decided to renegotiate the so-called contract with Textgenesys. This
according to him was because he realized that the party was being short changed
on the existing "contract". The Treasurer said he renegotiated the
contract with Textgenesys to secure better returns for the party, Asked on
whose authority he did the so-called contract renegotiation, the Treasurer
affirmed that it was his unilateral initiative and decision. Although he had
insisted that there was an existing contract which formed the basis of his
"renegotiation" with Textgenesys, he failed to furnish the committee
with a copy of the original contract so-called.
 |
| Abankwa Yeboah, NPP Treasurer |
The committee found that the so-called renegotiated contract
is indeed between Mr. Abankwa Yeboah as an individual and Textgenesys rather
than between the party as a corporate entity. and Textgenesys. On that basis it
stands to reason that as a matter of fact the party has no contract whatsoever
with Textgenesys. Although the Treasurer claimed that the arrangement has
earned the party some revenue, he failed to provide any evidence or details of
such revenue accruing to the party as a result of the arrangement with
Textgenesys. A copy of the "new contract" signed between Mr. Abankwa
Yeboah and Textgenesys is annexed to this report.
Paul Afoko on
Textgenesys
The National Chairman, Mr. Paul Afoko, in his testimony to
the committee on the party's text fund raising project, affirmed that during
earlier discussions between himself, the General Secretary and the National
Treasurer, and also at meetings of the Steering Committee, a decision was taken
to abrogate whatever contract there may be between the party and Textgenesys.
The reasons among others were that:
1. The
whole arrangement with Textgenesys did not appear to be transparent;
2.
The
party could not sight any contract document and so could not manage the
transaction properly;
3.
It
was not clear how much revenue was accruing to the party from the arrangement
and how such revenue were being paid to the party.
It therefore came to him as a surprise that the Treasurer
had gone ahead to do a socalled contract renegotiation with Textgenesys. The
National Chairman told the committee that he had been advised by the Finance
Committee by a letter dated
18th August, 2015, that the company approved
by the Finance Committee to undertake the 'text fund raising' project for the
party is PAYMANEX; and that the Finance Committee had picked this company after
a number of companies had made presentations to the Finance Committee. The
National Chairman testifies further that he proceeded to enter into a contract
with PAYMANEX on the behalf of the party, based on the decision of the Finance
Committee and in accordance with the party's constitution. (A copy of the
Finance Committee's letter to the National Chairman is annexed to this report).
The National Chairman testified further that in spite of the
party's decision as stated above, the National Treasurer, on a number of
occasions, caused the arrest and detention of agents of PAYMANEX for going out
into the field to implement the party's decision. Meanwhile, the National
Treasurer had unilaterally authorized agents of Textgenesys to go into the
field to undertake fund raising through the issue of membership cards. The
Chairman added that even when the General Secretary issued a public statement
to the effect that PAYMANEX is the company authorized by the party to undertake
fund raising through the issue of membership cards, the National Treasurer went
ahead and issued a counter public statement.
The National Chairman said to date the party has no
information as to how much the National Treasurer has raised through this
exercise especiallv owing to the fact that he (Abankwa Yeboah) has so far
failed to give any proper accounting or report on this activity.
Finance Committee
Testifies
A representative of the Finance Committee, Dr. K.K. Sarpong,
testified to the committee on behalf of the Finance Committee, as the
substantive Chairman of the Finance Committee, Mr. Kwadwo Mpiani was out of the
jurisdiction. In his testimony, Dr. Sarpong was emphatic and unequivocal on
what he described as the "intransigent, disruptive and indisciplined"
behavior of the National Treasurer, Mr. Abankwa Yeboah.
 |
| Aspiring President of Ghana, Nana Akufo Addo |
With reference to ~he impasse between the National Treasurer
and the General Secretary in matters of party administration and organizational
hierarchy, Dr. Sarpong's submission is very instructive:
"Administratively, the General Secretary is the Manager
and Administrative head of the party and therefore is responsible for planning
and budgeting. Treasurer could not be responsible for approving spending since
he is not the spending officer of the party. The spending officer of the party
is the General Secretary •••• There should not be any contest over hierarchy
because operationally, the General Secretary is the head of the party's
administration, with others helping".
He testified further that it is critical to resolve the
impasse between the Treasurer and the General Secretary promptly because as he
put it: "The Treasurer is damaging the party's chances of raising money,
especially his media and public pronouncements and actions".
On the issue of signatories to the
party's bank accounts, the Finance Committee Rep. said it would have been ideal
and in tandem with best practice to make the National Treasurer a mandatory
signatory to the party's accounts, plus one of any two others, i.e. the
National Chairman and the General Secretary. In view of what he describes as
the disruptive and intransigent behavior of the Treasurer however, he said the
Finance Committee has decided that the signatories to the party's accounts
should be:
1.
The
National Chairman
2.
The
General Secretary; and
3.
The
National Treasurer; any two of whom should sign to operate the party's
accounts.
On the unilateral decision by the National Treasurer to
reactivate the dormant Ecobank account, the Finance Committee Rep. was emphatic
that the action of the National Treasurer amounted to indiscipline and
impropriety. He said although the National Treasurer's decision to invest some
of the funds he deposited in that account in Treasury Bills and a Call Account
may be well intentioned, the whole action is completely wrong and called for
the National Treasurer to be disciplined at best, at worst to be relieved of
his post should he resist or refuse disciplinary action by the party. He said
the Treasurer had no authority nor mandate to do what he did.
On Textgenesys and the party's text fund raismg project, the
Finance Committee confirmed earlier submissions by the National Chairman that
it was the Finance Committee's decision that PAYMANEX is contracted by the
party to undertake the project, after a process of selection. He indicated that
the National Treasurer, who happens to be the secretary to the Finance
Committee was present at the Finance Committee meetings that took the above
decisions. The Treasurer's unilateral decision to enter into a contract with
Textgenesys is unauthorized, out of order and therefore illegal. He told the
committee that once the project had something to do with membership drive, it
was the job of the General Secretary working with the National Organizer to
handle the membership drive aspect of the project and not the National
Treasurer, although he recognizes that as Treasurer and Secretary to the
Finance Committee, the Treasurer obviously has a role to play in the party's
fund raising activities.
 |
| Sammy Crabbe here with the NPP General Secretary |
Sammy Crabbe on
Textgenesys
The 2nd Vice Chairman of the party, Mr. Sammy
Crabbe, in his testimony on the party's text fund raising project, told the
committee that the National Chairman assigned him to handle the project. He
said after some discussions at the Steering Committee, the
National Chairman tasked a team comprising the 1st Vice Chairman, Mr. Freddie Blay, he the 2nd
Vice Chairman and the National Treasurer, Mr. Abankwa Yeboah to work together
on the project. He told the committee further that the National Treasurer
flatly refused to work with the team. After this development, the National
Treasurer and some people who work for the pt
Vice Chairman started attacking him and
blackmailing him in the media that he had diverted the project to a company
owned by himself, among other accusations.
Mr. Crabbe testified further that the Finance committee
eventually took a decision to appoint PAYMANEX to undertake the text fund
raising project for the party because there were too many problems associated with
the way Textgenesys was handling the project, not least among which were a
complete lack of transparency and proper accountability.
Asked whether he was a shareholder or director of PAYMANEX,
he responded in the negative, and rather informed the committee that PAYMANEX
is a UK-based company represented locally by one Mrs. Sheila Bartels-Sam,
daughter of Hon. Kwamena Bartels.
CAUSES OF LACK OF
CO-OPEREATION BETWEEN THE NATIONAL TREASURER ON ONE HAND AND THE NATIONAL
CHAIRMAN AND THE GENERAL SECRETARY ON THE OTHER
During its sittings, the Committee spent considerable time
to explore the reasons for the lack of cohesion, cooperation and apparent deep
mistrust among National Officers, especially between the National Chairman, 2nd
Vice Chairman and the General Secretary on the one hand, and virtually all
other members of the Steering Committee on the other hand. On this subject matter,
the committee heard probably the most revealing testimony from the 2nd
Vice Chairman, Mr. Sammy Crabbe.
Sammy Crabbe Testifies
The 2nd Vice Chairman of the party, Mr. Sammy
Crabbe, in his testimony to the committee literally shocked committee members
when he revealed that soon after the April 2014 National Executive elections in
Tamale, a gentleman whom Mr. Crabbe would not name but simply described as a
fierce loyalist of the Flag Bearer invited him to a meeting to as the 2nd
Vice Chairman put it "recruit" him to undermine the National Chairman
and the General Secretary. This agenda was to render them ineffective in any
effort they would make to sabotage the Flag Bearer's campaign to win the
presidency in the 2016 Presidential Elections. Mr. Crabbe revealed to the
committee further that the gentleman in question explained that as pro-Kufuor
and anti-Akufo Addoelements the presence of the National Chairman and the
General Secretary at the helm of the party's affairs could jeopardize Nana
Akufo Addo's chances of winning the 2016 Presidential Elections if they are not
kept in check. Mr. Crabbe told the committee that he declined to cooperate with
this person and his group because in the words of Mr. Crabbe: "That will
be a sure recipe for rather losing the elections".
 |
| Sammy Crabbe |
Subsequent to this initial overture, another group
comprising mainly Regional Chairmen of the party, notable among whom were Mr.
Bugri Naabu and Alhaji Short, Regional Chairmen of Northern and Upper West
respectively, invited him for a meeting in Mr. Bugri Naabu's office and pleaded
passionately with him (Mr. Crabbe) that since they all supported his bid to
become the 2nd Vice Chairman of the party he should also support
their agenda to undermine the Chairman and the General Secretary. Mr. Crabbe
said he told the group that were that agenda going to help the party win the
elections he would have lent his support to it. Since he Crabbe was certain
that this would rather hurt party unity and therefore jeopardize the party's
chances of winning, he still refused to cooperate with the plan. "I don't
believe that that is the way to win power; if I did, I would have gone along
with that plot. Those who appear to be going against the Chairman and the
General Secretary in my view have accepted to undermine the two leaders of the
party, he added.
Mr. Crabbe told the committee that subsequent to these
developments, he started receiving text messages from Mr. Gabby Asare Okyere
Darko, former Director of the Danquah Institute and a very well-known loyalist
of the Frag Bearer to the effect that he Mr. Okyere had received information
that the 2nd Vice Chairman is 'not playing bali', and that if he
continued that way he the 2nd Vice Chairman was going to lose
friends. He said he was therefore not surprised that soon thereafter these
developments, he was basically added to the attacks and false accusations that
were being levelled against the National Chairman and the General Secretary. To
Mr. Crabbe, these are the real under currents of the present goings on in the
party, and that any effort to effectively deal with tensions, mistrust,
divisions and factionalism in the party ought to pay sincere attention to these
under currents.
General Secretary on
Tensions
The General Secretary revealed to the committee that soon
after the National Executive elections in Tamale (April 12, 2014), he came
across a document authored by people he knew to be fiercely loyal to the Flag
Bearer, Nana Akufo Addo, detailing how they should work to undermine the
recently elected officers who were perceived not to be loyal to the Flag
Bearer, in particular himself and the National Chairman. From the developments
that have followed his sighting of the said documents, the General Secretary
said he believes that the contents of that document are being implemented
against his good self, the National Chairman and the 2nd Vice
Chairman.
On how the current situation could be resolved, The General
Secretary told the committee a public declaration of a "vote of
confidence" from the Flag Bearer in support of the National Chairman, the
General Secretary and the 2nd Vice Chairman will go a long way to
discourage loyalists of the Flag Bearer from continuing to undermine them. He
believed this step is important because according to him, all the attacks
against him, the National Chairman and the 2nd Vice Chairman are
either by known loyalists of the Flag Bearer, or supported by them.
National Chairman on
Tensions
The National Chairman described the ongoing unrest in the
party as: "Factionalism gone mad". Mr. Paul Afoko told the Committee
that he was aware of efforts by people perceived to be the Flag Bearer's
backroom advisers to recruit other National Officers to undermine him. The
Chairman mentioned the 2nd Vice Chairman, Mr. Sammy Crabbe as one of
the national officers who was contacted to do that job. This testimony has been
amply corroborated by the 2nd Vice Chairman. Mr. Afoko told the
committee that on one occasion, Mr. Gabby Asare Okyere Darko sent him
threatening messages to the effect that after becoming Chairman he should not
attempt to fight what he Gabby called "the powers".
 |
| Paul Afoko, suspended NPP Chairman |
The National Chairman further told the committee that he
believes that a media interview granted by the Northern Regional Chairman, Mr.
Bugri Naabu in which the Regional Chairman said that by the time of the 2016
general elections, the pt Vice Chairman would replace him as
Chairman whilst the National Organizer Mr. John Boadu would replace the General
Secretary confirmed his suspicions that there was indeed a conspiracy to
undermine him and eventually push him out of office as Chairman of the party.
The National Chairman told the committee that the Flag
Bearer's apparent acceptance of the entrenchment of factionalism in the party
is not helping efforts at uniting the party. He for instance referred to a
discussion he had with the Flag Bearer on this subject matter, during which he
(the National Chairman) tried to impress upon the Flag Bearer that the practice
where factions meet to take positions before official party meetings was not
helping. The Chairman told the committee that the Flag Bearer's response was
that the practice where like-minded people meet and take a common position on
issues before official meetings was normal in all civilized organizations and
societies. He the Flag Bearer therefore did not see anything wrong with this
practice, although the National Chairman affirmed that he pointed it out to the
Flag Bearer that in this instance the practice was doing the party more harm
than good.
National Treasurer on
Tensions
For his part the National Treasurer told the committee that
he once overheard the National Chairman tell a member of the Finance Committee
that they (meaning the National Chairman and the General Secretary) will make
him the Treasurer redundant. He said he confronted the Chairman and it resulted
in a huge argument. Since then he, the Treasurer has taken steps to protect his
"territorv", as per his understanding of Article 9, Clause G (i) of
the party constitution.
National Organizer on
Tensions
The National Organizer for his part told the committee that
the reason for the suspicion and mistrust among national officers is that
virtually every memo he has given to the General Secretary has been leaked to
the press with the exception of two. One of the two which was not leaked was _
the one challenging the General Secretary that some actions of his were
contrary to decisions of the Steering Committee. The General Secretary in his
testimony on this matter however vehemently denies these charges.
Fred aware on Tensions
On the issue of the
tensions between national officers, the Immediate 1st Vice
Chairman,
Mr. Fred aware, registered
his deep disappointment and displeasure, especially regarding the rather
unhealthy relationship between the 1st Vice Chairman, Mr. Freddie Blay and the
National Chairman, Mr. Paul Afoko. He recounted his own experience as a 1st Vice Chairman and declared unequivocally
that: The office of the Vice Chairman is in fact part and parcel of the office
of the National Chairman. Constitutionally, the Vice Chairman is only to assist
the Chairman in the performance of his duties and not to usurp the Chairman's
office. Even when the Chairman is out of the jurisdiction, technology allows
contact and communication, and as 1st Vice Chairman I never took any decision
or step without reference to the Chairman, even when he was out of the
jurisdiction."
Mr. aware added that the situation where some national
officers are exploiting the current tensions in the party to undermine others
is unacceptable, and the situation cannot and should not be used by any officer
of the party as an excuse to do unconstitutional and wrong things.
Gifty Amma Ayeh, aka
Daavi Amma on Tensions
In her testimony to the committee on tensions among national
officers of the party, a Former National Treasurer, Mad. Gifty Ayeh
affectionately called Daavi Amma, said that in her opinion, the National
Treasurer's insistence that he does things his own way is one of the main
reasons for the difficulties the current administration is facing in managing
the party. She recounted her experience as National Treasurer thus:
"During my term the National Chairman was basically autocratic, running a
one-man show. However, we as national officers managed to work with him in the
interest of peace", She said the Treasurer should give respect to the
General Secretary who is the head of the party's administration.
Daavi Amma said the situation where the National Treasurer
is all over the place talking in the media and on other public platforms is not
helping matters. As she put it: "A Treasurer doesn't talk. How many people
know the names of the Treasurers of the other political party's; but the name
of our Treasurer is all over the place". On possible solutions to the
ongoing tensions among the party's national officers, Daavi Amma had this to
say: "lf the Presidential candidate can look the Treasurer in the face and
call him to order, a major part of the problem would have been solved",
INTERACTION WITH THE FLAG
BEARER
Towards the closing stages of its deliberations, the
committee moved to the Flag Bearer's office to interact with him and to seek
his views on the issues being investigated by the committee. The committee
brought to his attention the General Secretary's earlier report to the
committee in which he (General Secretary) said he had sighted a document
prepared by certain close associates of the Flag Bearer detailing how national
officers perceived not to be loyal to the Flag Bearer should be undermined.
Asked whether he had any knowledge of such a document, the Flag Bearer
responded in the negative, stressing thus: "What will be the benefit to me if the National Chairmanarfd the General
Secretary were undermined and prevented from working?"
On the General Secretary's suggestion that a public
declaration by the Flag Bearer of a "Vote of Confidence" in the
General Secretary, the 2nd Vice Chairman and the National Chairman
as a means of discouraging those who are undermining the three national officers,
the Flag Bearer said he did not think that that was the solution to the current
impasse.
The Flag Bearer however stressed that what he thinks is that
the principle of group decision making which underpins the party's constitution
should be respected and upheld by all leaders of the party; that this is the
surest way of curing the current ills of the party.
BAAH ACHAMFUOR APPEARS
As the saga of the Ecobank account unfolded, a member of the
party, one Mr. Baah Achamfuor of McCarthy Hill, Accra, was reported to have
filed a complaint with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the
Ghana Police, petitioning the police to investigate a purported case of fraud
in the party. This situation caused considerable consternation in the party, as
the complainant was later found to be a card bearing member of the party. The
committee therefore deemed it appropriate to locate the gentleman in question
to hear his testimony as to why he chose to report an internal party matter to
the police rather than to the leadership of the party. The need to locate Mr.
Baah Achamfuor to be interrogated by the committee became even more imperative
in view of suspicions and speculations making the rounds that the gentleman may
have been encouraged or instigated to take such a step by either the General
Secretary, the National Chairman, or indeed both of them.
Mr. Baah Achamfuor appeared before the committee on
Thursday, 24th Sept., 2015 as the 11th witness. The key question the committee
demanded an answer to from the gentleman was why he, as a card bearing member,
would proceed to report an internal matter of the party to the police instead
of bringing it to the attention of the leadership of the party. Mr. Achamfuor
responded that he had two main reasons for choosing that line of action:
1. According to him, he had information that
an account had been "fraudulently" opened in the name of the party at
the Trust Towers Branch of the Ecobank by the National TreaSUrer and the 1st Vice Chairman of the party. He said he
relayed this information to a member of the Finance Committee of the party whom
he would not name, and asked that the said Finance Committee member cross check
the information with the National Treasurer.
Achamfuor told the Committee further that the said Finance
Committee member returned later to inform him (Achamfuor) that the National
Treasurer had denied any knowledge of the existence of such an account. Armed
with certain documentary evidence that he had confirming the existence of such
an account, and coupled with the denial of the National Treasurer of the
existence of such an account, he said he suspected that a crime was being
committed and therefore took the decision to report to the police.
2. The second reason Mr. Achamfuor gave for
choosing to report his concerns to the police and not to the party leadership
was that on a previous occasion when he had information on a similar incident
of financial impropriety at the party headquarters during the tenure of
Chairman Jake Obetsebi lamptey, no action was taken when he report the matter
to the then National Chairman Jake with whom he was working as a Special
Assistant. When the committee pressed Achamfuor for further and better
particulars of the alleged incidence, he intimated that at the time, he had
information with documentary evidence that the then General Secretary, Mr.
Owusu Afriyie and the then National Treasurer, Madam Esther Ofori, had diverted
party funds into their personal accounts.
He told the committee that when he reported this matter to
Chairman Jake Obetsebi Lamptey, no action was taken. He insisted that his
actions are rather in the best interest of the party and the nation, adding
that should the party require that he provides any evidence to help investigations
into the allegations he had made, he would be prepared to assist the party deal
with the problem of financial impropriety in the party. Indeed, Mr. Achamfuor
went ahead to provide the committee with details of his residential address and
McCarthy Hill, Accra, as well as his telephone numbers.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The work of the committee has revealed very deep seated
acrimony, animosity and a major factional divide within the party.
Unfortunately, this situation is being exploited by some party members and
leaders to the detriment of party unity, cohesion and internal harmony. Matters
have not been helped by an apparent lack of effective enforcement of
discipline. In an effort to deal effectively with the party's current
situation, the following Recommendations are being proposed:
1. That Article 17 of the Party's
Constitution be operationalized and the Finance Committee be mandated to
immediately draft Financial Regulations to supplement the provisions of the
constitution on the party's financial management.
NB:
The Finance Committee
representative who appeared before the committee told the committee that his
committee had already drafted proposals for such Financial Rules and
Regulations for the party, ready to present same to the National Executive
Committee. We recommend that the necessary action must be expedited on the said
proposals for implementation.
2. The National Council should arrange an
introspection meeting of all National Officers at which all fears and
suspicions would be laid bare and all grudges brought into the open for a
no-holds-barred discussion. It is recommended that this meeting is facilitated
by professional psychologists and counselors before the end of the year.
3.
The
National Chairman should ensure that henceforth the group decision making
principle which underpins the party's constitution is adhered to.
4. That the National Treasurer is referred
to the National Discipline Committee for the appropriate sanctions for gross
misconduct, indiscipline and for arrogating to himself powers that he is not
constitutionally mandated to exercise, particularly with respect to his
unilateral decision to reactivate a dormant account of the party and operate
same, as well as for unilaterally entering into a so-called contract with
Textgenesysand enforcing same against the decision of the party's Finance
Committee.
5. That the 1st Vice Chairman is referred to the National
Disciplinary Committee for the appropriate sanctions for gross misconduct in
view of his usurpation of the powers and functions of National Chairman even in
situations that the National Chairman is available in the jurisdiction and is
ready, willing and able to perform his functions as National Chairman.
6. That the National Treasurer is ordered by
the Finance Committee to provide it with the documentary details of the revenue
that has accrued to the party from the Textgenesys text fund raising activities
to date.
7. That the National Treasurer who purchased
a Treasury Bill and established a Call Account on behalf-of the party without
proper authorization, and the 1st Vice Chairman who improperly authorized
the above transactions, are ordered by the National Executive Committee of the
party to furnish it with the original copy of the Treasury Bill Certificate, as
well as original documentary details of where the Call Account is held and the
current status thereof.
8. That in view of the rather serious
allegations made by Mr. Baah Achamfuor against the Immediate Past General
Secretary, Mr. Owusu Afriyie and the Immediate Past National Treasurer, Mad.
Esther Ofori of financial impropriety, the National Executive Committee
institutes investigations into those allegations to establish the facts
thereof.
9. That the former National Chairman, Mr.
Peter McManu, is ordered by the National Executive Committee of party to
explain in writing, the circumstances under which he opened or caused to be
opened a party account at the Trust Towers Branch of the Ecobank and how it was
run without the knowledge of the then General Secretary, the then National
Treasurer nor indeed the Steering Committee.
SIGNED: Nana Ohene-Ntow,
(Chairman)
Dated: 20th Nov., 2015
20th
August 2015
Nana Ohene- Ntow
ACCRA
Dear Sir,
APPOINTMENT TO SERVE ON
SPECIAL NEC COMMITTEE
At its
Meeting held on Wednesday, 19th August 2015, the National Executive
Committee of the Party decided to set up an Adhoc Committee to look into the
Financial Administration of the Party, Issues related to Fees received for the
2015 Parliamentary Primaries and Other Financial Matters.
You were, accordingly,
appointed a Member of the Committee. Nana Ohene-Ntow will be Chairman of the
Committee, with Hon. Joseph Osei Owusu as Secretary. The
Committee shall have the
following Terms of Reference:
1. To establish the Total
Amount collected as Fees for the 2015 Parliamentary Primaries;
2. To establish the Bank
Account(s) into which the Fees were lodged;
3. To
determine the Disbursements out of those Accounts and the purpose for those
disbursements;
,
4. To establish the
approvals for those disbursements;·-
5. To investigate the
cause(s) of the impasse between the National Treasurer and the National
Chairman/General Secretary;
6. To ascertain
how the dormant Bank Account at the Trust Towers Branch, was reactivated,· and
how it has operated;
7. To investigate the circumstances under which the
National Treasurer entered into a Contract with Textgenesys Limited for the
collection of Membership Dues and Monies that have accrued from the process.
8.
To
investigate any other matters which, in the opinion of the Committee, are
relevant to its work;
9.
To
submit Recommendations to forestall any such occurrences in the future.
The Committee may invite
any Witnesses to assist it in its work and has the power to subpoena anyone to
appear before it, to give evidence.
The Committee is to submit
its Report to the National Chairman, for onward transmission to the National
Executive Committee.
Yours faithfully,
Paul Awentami Afoko
cc: Kwabena Agyepong, General Secretary
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