‘Tarzan’s salary claim has no basis’

-Budget Officer
Posted: The Chronicle | Friday, October 30, 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

The Director of Administration at the office of the President, who is also responsible for Budget, Sam Azu Aziakor yesterday told the Ghana@50 probe that Dr. Charles Wereko Brobby, the Chief Executive of the defunct Ghana@50 Secretariat is not entitled to any salary because he does not have any appointment letter.
When Wereko Brobby appeared before the commission recently, he appealed to the Commissioners to ensure that his salaries, which are in arrears, paid to him.

He however recalled that somewhere last year, the former CEO put up a memo which was addressed to him (Aziakor), asking him to initiate processes which would lead to the payment of his salary.

Upon receipt, Mr. Aziakor said he conferred with the former chief of staff, Mr. Kwadwo Mpiani as to what should be done, since Dr. Wereko Brobby needed the money to go for some medical treatment. For this reason, he noted that they agreed to give him an amount of US$ 75,000 as advance payment of his outstanding salary arrears, which dated back to the year 2006, when he was employed as CEO of the Secretariat.

This claim by the Director of Administration baffled the Chairman of the Commission, Justice Duose, who ascertained from him the basis for which the said salary advancement was given to the former CEO, because the latter had not been given any appointment where his emoluments would have been stated.

Mr. Aziakor responded - “My Lord, I think in this case the salary had not been determined, so they were still working around it.” Aziakor, however, agreed that since no appointment letter was given to Dr. Charles Wereko Brobby, he was not entitled to any salary.

He nevertheless acknowledged the amount of GH ¢200,000 that Dr. Wereko Brobby used as a start up capital to establish the Secretariat, which has since been paid to him.

When he appeared before the Commission recently, Dr. Wereko Brobby claimed he was entitled to a monthly salary of GH ¢5000 and the government owed him a total amount of US$ 146,000 covering the entire period he served as CEO of the Secretariat.

Earlier, Mr. Aziakor took time to take the Commission through the role he and the office of the President played in the activities and operations of the Ghana@50 Secretariat, which he said was to convey executive decisions to the Secretariat.

He insisted that no official at the office of the President was directly or indirectly employed, or paid any money for their individual and respective roles.

They only prepared the pay vouchers and forwarded it to the appropriate authorities for payment.

As at Wednesday, October 28th 2009, he said his office had released about GH ¢7.5million to the Secretariat, with an outstanding balance of GH ¢782,262.20. The total debt of the Secretariat as at now stands at GH ¢11million.

Though the office of the President was somehow involved in the disbursement of some of the monies, Mr. Aziakor noted that no payment was made without the knowledge and consent of the CEO, Dr. Wereko Brobby.

He could also not tell whether the Secretariat got any surplus on their accounts as asserted by Dr. Wereko Brobby.

The Director of Administration at the office of the President could also not confirm whether any funds were released by the Secretariat to Ghana’s missions abroad for the celebration.

Fallout from Ghana@50 Chairman's remark

DUOSE GROWLS OVER ATTACKS
...'I did not call for killing of journalists'
Posted: The Chronicle |Fri, 30 Oct 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu & George Frimpong

The Chairman of the Ghana@50 Commission, Justice Isaac Douse has told The Chronicle that he has no evil intension against any journalist in Ghana, and that his recent comment that Ghanaian journalists are overly crtitical on public office holders because they are not killed as it happens in other parts of the world, was reported out of contest.

Justice Duose, who invited these reporters to his office to express concern over the report, was also not happy with an editorial by The Chronicle on the issue, which according to him, sought to create the impression that he wanted people to take the law into their own hands and kill Journalists in Ghana.

Justice Duose was quoted as saying - “Rwanda was caused by the press and if the press wants Rwanda to happen in this country, they will get it.

Fortunately for them, in this country, people don't kill Journalists, so they are going on.” Though he admits saying the things attributed to him, the Chairman of the Commission said the import of the message he wanted to convey to the media was taken out of contest.

According to him, it was unfortunate for some media houses to create the impression that he was advocating for violence against journalists. Justice Duose, who is an Appeals Court Judge, told The Chronicle that he respects fundamental human rights and the tenets of democracy, and would therefore not do anything to undermine these values.

“I will not be happy if Journalists are killed because it is part of my obligation to protect the rights of Journalists”, he said, adding “I unreservedly apologize to Journalists, any individual or group of persons who may feel offended by those comments I made”, stressing that he did not have the slightest intention to cause disaffection among the media.

“The comments were not made to invite people to kill Journalists”, he emphasised. This, according to him, is due to the fact that both Judges and Journalists are enjoined to protect human rights and life.

Justice Duose's alleged comments on journalists and the Rwanda factor came after the former Chief of Staff who was also the Chairman of the National Planning Committee of the country's 50th independence anniversary celebrations, Mr. Kwadwo Okyere Mpiani raised concern about the way people express suspicions against public officials, when he appeared before the Commission recently.

“I hope the press which is leading the campaign of vilification in this country has heard you well. As I sit here, they have started vilifying me.

I'm going to sit here just for a short while but they have already started pulling me down,” myjoyonline quoted him as saying.